Behind The Mirror
by BlackImprint
Summary: An ancient spellbook, a portal to another world, and magic of more than just the wolfy kind. Is the imprint a magical fluke, or is it the one real truth in this collision of worlds? Set Post-BD. M for language and a few smatterings of random citrus. **NOW COMPLETE**
1. Chapter 1

**A/N - **_Thank you for reading. I'm roadtesting a different writing style, so this story is quite different from my other one. I hope to update regularly, depending on where the story takes us (and how much real-life gets in the way!). As always, comments and feedback are welcome and very much appreciated._

Cheers,  
>~ BlackImprint<p>

**All Twilight characters belong to Stephenie Meyer.**

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><p><em>Jacob POV<em>

I can't believe I agreed to go along this. But I did, because it made her happy. It was the imprint. I couldn't deny her. I wouldn't deny her—I didn't want to. I would do anything for Nessie—_my _Nessie.

Rewind… Back to a few days ago. At least I think it was a few days ago. It could have been a week, or even a month, for all I knew. Everything's blurred into one massive clusterfuck. Just thinking about it made my head hurt.

I was at the Cullen house watching the game with Emmett and Jasper. Nessie had flitted downstairs with a massive leather-bound book in her arms, anticipation beaming from her cute little face. Her bronze curls cascaded down her back as she practically _bounced_ with excitement. By all counts, she'd be about 19 now, but could still get wound up more than a four year old.

She shoved the book into my lap. "Jake, Jake, check out page 739!" The excitement was just about spilling over in her voice.

I eyed the musty old relic suspiciously. She must have dug the thing out of the bowels of Carlisle's library.

Nessie loved to read, but me—I'm more of a 'let's wait for the movie version' kind of wolf. I didn't want to touch it, but the eyesore was already in my lap. It was kinda dusty. And old. And wordy. Yeah, it was really wordy. And the game was already into the fourth quarter. And the score was tied. And I really wanted to see how it would end—the game, I mean—not Nessie's latest escapade.

Undead Hulk and Walking Prozac chewed the insides of their cheeks, looking like they were about to bust a gut laughing at any moment—they knew I couldn't hold out on Nessie and it was only a matter of time till I caved. I looked over at my angel, thinking how cute she looked cute with her big brown eyes looking expectantly at me. My heart swelled with love for her, and so yeah, I did what I was told.

Opening up the book to page 739, I saw it said '_Opening A Portal_' in fancy shmancy old writing.

Great. I could see where this was leading.

I'm usually the last person to say no to some fun, but whenever Nessie got that look in her eye it usually led to one of two things: some wild goose chase culminating in Eddie boy being supremely pissed with me, or some wild goose chase culminating in Bella being even more pissed with me. Not that I particularly cared about incurring Sparkle Boy's wrath (it was sort of fun, really), but Bells was some kinda scary—I could just picture her now, golden eyes blazing as she lectured me '_How could you have gone along with this, Jacob? You're supposed to be the adult!_' Sure, sure, whatever Bells. So anyway, for the sake of my own self-preservation I pretended not to understand where Nessie was going with this. I loved my girlfriend, but she drove me guano sometimes.

"Look," Nessie huffed at me as I smiled at indulgently at her. She even looked cute when she was annoyed. Too bad right now that annoyance was directed at me. "Focus, Jake," she lectured, putting one hand on her hip in that pose I'd come to know so well. I loved it when she got all bossy. It was hot. She was hot. My pants felt tighter. _Shit_. I was suddenly thankful for the massive book covering my lap.

"It says right here," my angel pointed out, snapping me back to reality as she started reading from the musty old pages, "that if you place two mirrors facing each other, the infinity of reflections will open a portal to another dimension. But it has to be done precisely at midnight, on a night of no moon." She looked up at me. I knew what was coming next. I braced myself for it. "Oh Jake, that sounds like so much fun!" she practically squealed. "Let's do it!" She looked at me expectantly.

"I dunno Ness," I countered. My spider-sense, wolf-sense, whatever-the-hell-you-want-to-call-it-sense was tingling. "Sounds kinda creepy. And dangerous." But that just seemed to get her more animated and curious. So I tried a different approach. "Anyway, how do you even know it's gonna work?" That, unfortunately, was about as effective as throwing petrol on a fire.

Nessie was practically beside herself at the prospect of a new adventure "Oh, come ON! Stop being such a boring _old_ man, Jake," she said, putting unnecessary emphasis on the _old_. Dammit, she knew exactly what buttons to push. "What's the worst that can happen? If it all ends up being nonsense we won't be any worse off than if we'd never tried it." And then she looked up at me with those big brown eyes again. I braced myself for the inevitable.

"Pleeeease, Jake," she pleaded, doing that thing with her eyes again that made me turn to jelly. Game Over. Nessie 1,076 - Jake nil. Gigantor and Prozac just sniggered. I made a mental note to kick their asses into next Tuesday the next time we played football.

So anyway—that's how, a few nights later, Nessie and I came to be standing on the edge of the treeline outside the Cullen house, waiting for the clock to tick over to midnight. We had set up two full-length mirrors and placed them face-to-face. Each mirror reflected off the other resulting in, as the book had described, an infinity of repeated reflections between them. I had to admit, it did look kinda cool. And thankfully, since Nessie had first come up with this crazy idea, I had managed to talk _some _sense into her. I had insisted that we study page 740 – "How To Close A Portal" - Probably a good idea to be able to turn something off as well as on. And she had agreed that if things started to get out of hand, I could put an end to this little adventure.

To be honest, I was sceptical. Yes, we were mystical creatures. And yes, we had seen and known a lot of things that would make most people question their sanity. But opening a portal to another dimension? Come _on_. That was just a little too far-fetched.

But as 23:59 clicked over to 0:00, there was a flash and then a dull glow appeared between the two mirrors. No. Fucking. Way. It worked. This was actually happening. I couldn't decide whether to be amazed or scared shitless. With the benefit of 20-20 hindsight, I should have put an end to this when I had the chance. But Nessie was practically bouncing out of her skin with excitement.

She moved to peer into the glow. I tried to hold her back, but she stuck her hand into it, seemingly mesmerised by how the lights danced between the two planes of glass. When she pulled her hand out, there was what looked like a drop of liquid mirror on her skin. It started to roll _up_ her arm, leaving a trail of silver in its wake. What the fuck? What kind of liquid rolls _uphill_? I tried to brush it off her, but when it touched my skin it clung to me too and began tracing the same path. The infinity of reflections blurred around us and I felt the glow become stronger as everything else around us distorted and fell away. The mercury-like substance spread further on our bodies and began to swallow us. I felt the cold surfaces of the mirrors mold themselves around us as they closed in.

I tried to remember what the book said about closing a portal, but my mind went blank. Fuck. Fuck. _Fuck_. All I could do was I hold onto Ness as tightly as possible, trying to keep her safe. I saw the panic in her eyes as she realised we had passed the point of no return. The cold liquid of the mirrors' surfaces enclosed themselves around us.

And then there was darkness.

Silence.

So fast forward to now. Here we are. Fuck knows where _here_ is. Fuck knows how long it's been. And I still can't fucking believe I agreed to go along with what got us into this mess. Actually, to clarify—I have no trouble believing I went along with it, I just can't believe I was so fucking stupid.

Note to self: Do not do shit that's written in musty old books—like opening portals. Double-don't do it if your wolf instincts are sounding alarm bells. And most of all, don't ignore the alarm bells, no matter how much Nessie begs. It will only lead to tears. Mostly hers. And for you that just means it's going to be fuck-painful-as-all-get-out, since you can't stand to see her upset. But that's what got us into this mess in the first place anyway, right?

This actually would all have been kinda cool, if there was a 'reset' button or something to get us out of here once it stopped being fun. But there wasn't. And speaking of reset buttons, where was that goddamn book? I was sure I was holding onto it, but when we got here it was nowhere to be found. Fat lot of good page 740 does for us now – 'How To Close A Portal' – FAIL.

Ever since we'd arrived in this strange place, everything seemed hazy to me. Not confusing hazy—just physically hazy. I couldn't see as clearly as I was used to—somehow things didn't seem to be pulled into as sharp a focus as normal. And the sounds and smells seemed so dull here. At first, I had put it down to disorientation but it had been a while now and the haze still hadn't lifted. Nessie had described experiencing something similar, so I thought it must have actually just been really foggy here. But something still didn't seem quite right, and I couldn't put my finger on it. I actually _felt_ different, but how I couldn't quite explain.

This was bad. Really bad. How was I going to get us out of this? My mind was going about a thousand miles a minute, its foremost thought being that I needed to get my Nessie back to the safety of home, pronto.

Now that I was able to stop and take a proper look around us, I saw that we were in a forest of some kind. Nessie had finally fallen asleep, unable to fight off the exhaustion any longer. I held her in my arms, her head against my chest as I leaned up against the trunk of a large tree. I stroked her hair and listened to her soft breathing. The upside of all this, I reasoned, was that at least I'm here with her. If she'd just gone off and done this on her own, she would have disappeared without a trace, and I would have been going out of my mind trying to find her. I was going out of my mind right now, but at least I had her here with me. I could protect her, and I would bring her home. I kissed the top of her head, and she snuggled in closer, as I breathed in the sweet scent of my Nessie and tightened my arms around her.

I stayed awake, keeping watch and watching over her. At the same time I also kept racking my brains for some way to get us out of this mess and back home again. But first, I had to figure out where we were. I didn't even know if we were actually in a different dimension (as the book had said), or just in some bizarre, unexplored part of the Earth.

As I sat there pondering this, I looked up into the sky and saw three moons. Okay, I thought, so that's one question answered at least—

_I don't think we're Kansas anymore, Toto_.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N – All Twilight characters belong to Stephanie Meyer.**

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><p><em>Renesmee POV<em>

It was all my fault.

I was bored, so I'd gone rummaging around in Grandpa Carlisle's library. When I found the locked chest – well, that was just like waving a red rag to a bull. Of course I picked the lock. And of course I read the ancient-looking manuscript hidden inside the chest – if it was locked away, it _had_ to be juicy. When I saw the instructions on how to open a portal to another dimension… ding, ding, ding – Jackpot!

And so a couple of nights later, there were Jake and I, lining up the mirrors just like the book had said to do. When it actually worked, I couldn't believe it. I just had to touch the lights dancing between the mirrors, if only to make sure I wasn't hallucinating, or dreaming. I wish now that I'd just pinched myself like any normal person would have done. The enormity of what was happening dawned on me right before the mirrors wrapped around us. I think I was in shock – I had tried to utter the words to close the portal, but no sound came out. Icy fear shot through my veins. The last thing I remembered was feeling Jake holding me tightly, before the darkness closed in.

When I opened my eyes again, we were here.

I felt so bad for what I'd done. First, I'd pushed him into going along with this when I knew he didn't want to. Then I'd recklessly ignored everything he'd said. And then I had cried when I'd realised how much I'd messed up. I felt like such a stupid girl. I needed to be strong, but instead I had bawled like some snotty, spoilt child. Jake had comforted me. "It's okay, honey," he had murmured against my hair as he held me in his arms. "We'll get home. I'll get you home." But that just made me sob even harder. This was my fault, and he was comforting me. I should have been the one comforting him.

I had cried myself to sleep against Jake's chest. I'd woken up a while ago, but was still feeling ashamed. I knew he wouldn't blame me, but that just made it worse. So here I was, pretending to still be asleep. I felt him absentmindedly stroke my hair. His lips gently touched the top of my head, and his arms tightened around me. I snuggled in closer to him.

I had grown up enveloped in my Jake's warmth and sunshine. When I was young, he'd watched over me like a big brother, and as I got older he became my best friend. And then one day those feelings deepened. My goofy best friend grew into the man I loved with all my heart. I fell deeper in love with him every day, and I was convinced there was no way my feelings would be reciprocated. I tried so hard to hold them back, but they spilled over and soon it became impossible to deny. When he finally told me that he loved me too, I was so happy I thought my heart would burst.

And then he had told me about imprinting. It sounded so wonderful - the bonding together of a wolf and his soulmate. I had known the stories about him and Mom, but then he explained how imprinting on me had changed everything. He described how his world's centre of gravity had shifted to me, and I had become his reason for living. He would love and protect me always, and he would know instinctively what I needed. He would know, because I was his soulmate. He was bonded to me by something more powerful than words could ever describe. How could I not help but feel totally, utterly, completely loved?

But over the years I began to wonder if what he felt for me was real or just some "magical wolfy claim thing," as Aunt Rose had described it. I had no doubt he loved me, but the imprint had decided that for him. Would he still love me if he had a choice? Every time my thoughts began to stray that way, I'd shut them off. I didn't care what it was, or the reason for it. My Jacob loved me, and that was all that mattered. From the day I was born – that first time our eyes met - I felt like something was weaving our two souls together. I always felt there had to be more to it than just the imprint though - the connection between us was so strong, it couldn't have just been the result of some magical fluke. I loved this wonderful, gentle, brave, amazing giant of a man so much. He was, is, and always would be, my everything.

And now I had dragged him into this awful mess.

I decided it was time to stop being such a sook, so I sat up and looked at Jake. He looked terrible – he obviously hadn't slept a wink all night. I put my palm to his cheek. 'I'm sorry,' I projected to him. But he just smiled and looked at me questioningly.

"Your hands are so cold, honey" he murmured to me. He was right. He wasn't as warm as usual either. Maybe it was the cold night air. But that still didn't explain why he was behaving as if he hadn't 'heard' what I'd projected to him. I tried again. He put his large russet hand over my small pale one and rubbed it to warm it up. Okay, I thought - so maybe my gift was on the blink. I was probably tired and so that's why it wasn't working, I reasoned. I wondered if it had anything to do with how muted our surroundings seemed. This world didn't seem too different to our own, but looked more blurry somehow – like I was peering through a foggy window. I felt different too. I couldn't put my finger on it, but the sensation was strange – like my senses were somehow dulled.

I decided to give up on the telepathy for now. I had bigger fish to fry.

"I'm sorry," I said out aloud to him.

His eyes softened. "Ness, it's okay. We'll get out of this, I promise." He continued rubbing my hands between his. The warmth of the friction was nice. Why was I feeling the cold?

"That's not what I meant, Jake." I said sternly to him. "I'm sorry for dragging you into this. I should have listened to you. I won't be so reckless again." I looked at him apologetically. I hugged him close to me and hoped that he would understand how truly sorry I was.

I felt his touch on my face as he lifted my chin so I was looking at him. "And I said it's okay, honey. I'm not cross with you." And then he grinned at me, his dark eyes twinkling. "Fuh-ged-da-bout-it" he said in his best Mafioso voice. I giggled. Jake always knew how to make everything better. He beamed at me, and leaned in for a kiss. His lips touched mine, and the universe felt in balance again.

Truth be told, if he hadn't gone along with my little project, I probably would have tried to do it on my own. What an even bigger disaster that would have been. I was thankful that he was here. As long as we were together, I knew everything would be all right.

I decided it was time to size up our situation, so I started to get up. "I'm going to look around," I told him.

"Wait, honey," he stopped me. "It might be dangerous. I'll come with you."

I was about to get all indignant on his ass and tell him that I was perfectly capable of looking after myself, but then I remembered why we were here in the first place. So I smiled sheepishly and helped him up. He took my hand in his and we started to look around.

It was early morning, and the darkness around us was beginning to lift. As it became lighter, I could see that our surroundings looked a lot like the forests around Forks. We made our way through the trees, not really sure where we were going, but just needing to get a better idea of what we were up against. Jake unhelpfully muttered something about making sure we didn't miss the yellow brick road. We were coming to a clearing when I heard rustling in the bushes. I spun around to the direction of the sound, and my jaw dropped.

About twenty feet away stood an enormous wild boar. At least I thought it was a boar. It was about the size of cow, and had massive tusks curled around like a woolly mammoth's. It bared its teeth and got ready to charge us. I thought about pouncing on the beast - I hadn't hunted for nearly a week, so the thirst should have been starting to burn in the back of my throat by now - but my legs wouldn't move. The craving that would normally have spurned me into action was non-existent. I stood rooted to the spot, frozen with fear.

Quick as a flash Jake jumped in front of me. "Ness, get behind me." A low growl sounded in his chest as he stared down the giant boar-like creature. Jacob's muscles tightened as he got ready to phase. I knew what was coming next, so I backed away from him a bit to give him room. I saw the familiar tremors ripple through his body, and watched for the giant russet wolf to burst forward. Jake crouched down, ready to spring. And then -

Nothing.

He looked at me with panic in his eyes.

"Ness, RUN." He shouted. "I can't phase."


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N **_– Thank you for following the story this far. The first two chapters laid the foundations and hinted at a few scene setters - and now we're starting to get into the meat and potatoes of the story!_

**All Twilight characters belong to Stephanie Meyer.**

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><p><em>Jacob POV<em>

I stood my ground, ready to wrestle the – whatever the fuck it was – to the ground. I was a good 6 foot 7 and solid muscle, so even in my human form I was sure I could do it some damage. But my first priority was Nessie. Whenever we hunted back home, she could take down a large elk, or even a mountain lion. But we were in another world now, and I didn't know how strong this creature might be. I needed to protect my Ness, and the wolf-form was always the stronger option.

My body had rippled with the familiar tremors as I prepared myself for the change. I crouched down, ready to spring. And then – What the..? No explosion of fur. No horse-sized wolf. No big sharp teeth to protect her with. What the fuck just happened? Or more to the point – _not_ happened? I'd felt a bit strange since we'd been here. Was this why? I couldn't phase here?

I started to freak when I realised my Ness was in danger and I might not be able to protect her. I had shouted at her to run. But she didn't move. She just stood there, frozen. I was staring down the creature, debating whether to wrestle it to the ground or haul Nessie over my shoulder and get the hell out of Dodge. And then out of nowhere a bunch of arrows shot through the air and lodged themselves in the beast's throat. It fell to the ground.

I saw movement about fifteen feet to my left. Out of the bushes stepped three large men.

I stretched myself to my full height so that I was shielding Ness behind me, and spread out my arms in a defensive stance. And then I hoped to God this wasn't a case of 'out of the frying pan, into the fire.'

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><p><em>Nessie POV<em>

I stared at Jake in disbelief. I was sure I'd misheard him. What did he mean - 'I can't phase'? He was the Alpha, for God's sake. Out of all the wolves _he_ had always been the one best able to control the phasing. This all just seemed so out of place. Then I snapped out of it - I had to think quick if I was to protect him. A fleeting thought crossed my mind about pouncing on the creature, but before I could act it teetered and then fell to the ground. In its neck were lodged around half a dozen arrows. The blood in the animal's throat made a gurgling sound as it fought its last breaths. To my surprise, rather than the usual thirsty burn that this would have evoked in me, it made me feel sick.

Jake still had his back to me, but he was standing to his full height with his shoulders back in full Alpha mode. He was like a wall of solid muscle. He was staring at some bushes to our left, and I saw that three large men had stepped out from behind them, holding what looked like crossbows of some kind. All three were barefoot and barechested, the only clothing they wore were pants made of tanned leather. They were all tall, muscled and had skin the colour of burnt copper. I thought they looked a lot like Jake and his pack brothers. The three men looked at the fallen animal, then at Jake, and then whispered among themselves as they surveyed the scene before them. Jake didn't move. A low growl rumbled in his chest as he sized them up.

The men lowered their weapons, and I heard one of them say something to us. I couldn't understand him, but the tone of his voice was friendly. He looked in our direction and seemed to comprehend that we didn't speak their language, so he stepped forward and held out his hand in a gesture of friendship. I felt Jake relax, and so I peered out from behind him. I was completely unprepared for their reaction. Their eyes widened when they saw my face. The two who hadn't come forward whispered excitedly to each other, but were silenced by the first. He was surprised by my appearance, but tried to keep a straight face. I still couldn't understand what they were saying, but I could tell something about me had piqued their attention.

They kept staring at me, although I could tell they were trying very hard not to make it obvious. I watched as one of the men put the creature out of its misery, and then they bundled up its body to take back with them. They started to move away, and the first one gestured to us to follow them. I was still nervous about their reaction to me and Jake wasn't entirely at ease either, but we decided it was probably in our interests to go with them. They were the first people we'd seen since we'd been here, and they seemed friendly enough. If they had meant to harm us, we reasoned, they would have done it by now. At any rate, we were outnumbered and they had weapons. As long as Jake couldn't phase, we were no match for them. Better to stay on their good side until we had a better option.

As we followed them through the woods, Jake's inability to phase was playing on my mind. If he couldn't phase, I wondered if that meant our other powers were also gone? I remembered that my telepathy was on the blink earlier, but I had reasoned the probable cause as just being tiredness. I pressed my hand to Jake's arm and projected a question to him. "Where do you think they're taking us?" I asked him silently. But he didn't react.

I started to get annoyed, but that feeling dropped away when the realisation hit me. It all made sense now. The strange feelings, the sensitivity to the cold, the seeming fogginess of this world. We were experiencing everything without the supernatural enhancements to which we were accustomed.

To test my theory, I scratched my arm. My half-vampire skin should resist change and not react. But the skin reddened, before settling down to a pinky tinge where I had scraped my nails across it.

Oh, crap.

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><p><em>Jacob POV<em>

Nessie had been unusually quiet for about 15 minutes now. She was trotting along next to me, but her face was scrunched up deep in thought. She looked so cute. I ruffled her hair and she looked up and grinned at me but the smile didn't quite reach her eyes. We had been walking for a while, and other than that last exchange, all she had done in that time was put her hand on my arm, or squeeze my hand every now and then. When I had looked at her, she'd just smile. Then I noticed that she hadn't projected any thoughts to me since we'd been here. If I couldn't phase, was her gift out of action too? No freakin' wonder she looked tense. I rubbed her back, trying to comfort her, but I don't think it was working.

It really bothered me that I wasn't able to phase. What the fuck was _with_ that? I'd felt strange since we'd arrived. Now I knew it was because I couldn't phase, it made me anxious. And I felt so different too. _Everything_ felt so different. Funnily enough though, the only thing that didn't feel different was how I felt about Ness. My feelings for her were the one constant for me in this weird-ass world. I looked at my Nessie and my chest swelled with love for her. I pulled her closer to me and kissed the top of her head.

I saw she was starting to tire, so I motioned for her to let me carry her piggy-back the rest of the way. She hopped on, and nestled her face against the back of my neck. I loved feeling her skin against mine. "Thanks Jake," she murmured, as she started to doze off.

After about 20 more minutes of walking, we came to a small village. I saw our escorts hand over the bagged-up creature's body to a greeting party. Ah, I thought, those guys must have been a hunting party out on a hunting trip. Then my stomach growled – shit, I was hungry. It must have been louder than I thought, because one of the guys handed me a plate with some bread and dried meat, and gestured to me to eat. I gratefully accepted.

"Wake up, honey" I whispered to Ness. "We're here." I set her down and offered her some of the food, but she just shook her head sleepily. After a few moments though, she changed her mind and nibbled on some of the bread.

I scanned the scene around us. The village's occupants seemed a lot like a tribe. They were living much like I would have imagined my ancestors living before the white man came to our shores. No-one paid much attention to me. I figured it was because I looked very similar to them. But Nessie had everyone looking at her with a strange mix of excitement and adulation. With her pale alabaster skin and mass of long bronze curls, she probably looked to them like some kind of exotic walking, talking doll. I put my arm around her and drew her closer to my side as we were led through the village. I noticed some of the young men looking at her with a bit too much interest. _Mine_, the wolf snarled. Oh thank Christ it was still in there somewhere, even if I couldn't phase.

The tribespeople seemed friendly enough, but I knew we were being watched carefully in case we made any sudden moves. I felt a tap on my shoulder. It was the hunter who had seemed to be the leader of the three we had met earlier in the forest.

He pointed to himself. "Honiahaka" he said.

"Ho-ni-a-ha-ka", I repeated, gesturing to him. He nodded at me.

I tapped my palm against my chest, saying "Jacob."

"Jay-kob", he repeated, motioning at me.

We looked at each other and understood. Nice. We were communicating.

Honiahaka gestured for us to follow him. We were ushered into a large tent, where a hooded figure was crouched over a smouldering fire. He was stirring something in a small cauldron and adding bits and pieces to it while he read from a wad of papers. I don't know what I was expecting, but when he looked up at me and Ness … No. Fucking. Way.

Staring back at us was a pair of golden eyes.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N **_– Thanks again for reading. This is a shorter chapter, but it starts to answer some of the questions - and also raises a few new ones. Does anyone recognise the reference to _Stregoni Benefici? ^_^__

__Cheers,  
><em>_~ BlackImprint

**All Twilight characters belong to Stephanie Meyer.**

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><p><em>Jacob POV<em>

The owner of the golden eyes was wearing a long hooded cloak. Apart from the fact that he looked a lot like Obi-wan Kenobi, I didn't know what to think. The only ones I knew with eyes like that were the Cullens and the Denalis. At least the eyes belonging to this guy weren't red.

I looked at him - he was pale and looked too perfect to be real. He stood unnaturally still as he watched us. There was no sickeningly sweet vamp smell, but he looked so much like a bloodsucker. Why were these tribespeople harbouring a vampire? Was he a prisoner? Or was he one of them? And was he a bloodsucker or not? I was so confused now. Ugh, my head fucking hurt again.

I looked around the tent and saw masses of books piled up all over the place. There was a large table in one corner, with more books and papers piled high. There were some fancy looking writing things too. Comfortable looking cushions were scattered throughout the tent's interior. I saw Honiahaka bow to him and then back up to stand respectfully watching him. Okay, so Obi-wan Kenobi was definitely not a prisoner then.

Obi-wan pushed the hood down to his shoulders and stepped towards us for a better look. I tensed at his approach. I still didn't know whether he was a bloodsucker or not, but the wolf inside seemed to be fairly sure what it thought. I felt my hair stand on end, and a low growl rumbled in my chest. I pushed Nessie behind me and lowered my body into a defensive stance. This guy had given me no reason to be anxious about him, but I couldn't help the reaction – it was instinctual - like a reflex from the wolf inside me.

"o`¬#uycha`biy`¬?" he said to us. I stared at him blankly. Dude, we don't speak alien.

"o`¬#uycha`biy`¬?" he tried again, this time a little louder.

I still had no fucking idea what he was saying. "Hey man," I muttered. "saying it louder won't make us understand you. We're not deaf, we just don't speak your language."

The booming laugh took me by surprise. "Aha! So it is English that you speak." What the..? Did a universal translator just kick in? Faaaaa-arck me! Obi-wan just spoke English! I stood there dumbfounded. How the hell did he know English?

"Who are you? _What_ are you?" I demanded. He looked first at me and then at Ness, and then back again. His eyes narrowed as he contemplated us.

"Perhaps, my young friend," he countered, "that is a question I should be asking of you."

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><p>'<em>Hooded figure' POV<em>

As they stood there, I saw the shadow of a giant russet wolf super-imposed over the male, and a strange glowing fade in and out around the female's body. The wolf-shadow had snarled at me, as I heard a low growl rumble dangerously in the male's chest.

In all my centuries, I had never seen anything like this. They definitely were not of this realm. I wondered if they had travelled through from the other world, but the only way to do that would have been to open the portal. And the lone copy of the spell to do that - other than the one I had committed to memory - was safely hidden away.

Before I closed the corridor joining the two worlds, I had left my grimoire in the care of my trusted friend, the Stregoni Benefici. The book was too dangerous to have fall into the wrong hands, and since it couldn't be destroyed, I did the only thing I could - I sealed the pathway between this world and the other, so that the warlord Drago would never be able to use the book's secrets. And then I had summoned all my power to draw down a veil over the supernatural power in this realm. This was the only way for all of us to live in peace. It had taken almost all of my power, but I had done it. I did it not only for her, for my beloved, to keep her safe, but also to protect what was at stake. As the years went by I grew to love her people as if they were my own. She had long since passed away, but I had lived on. I stayed on here with them, and they had accepted me as one of their own. As their generations came and went, I continued to protect them.

When I was human I seemed to be able to affect the things around me. But after the change happened, this ability manifested itself as an ability to see beyond time and space, to summon and control the elements, and to shape the world around me. Some had called it 'magic', but in truth it was just my gift. Once the supernatural power in this world had been suppressed, I expected that I would begin to age along with my beloved. But I didn't. I could also still sense and see things that most couldn't. And what I saw before me now had me mystified.

As far as I knew, I was the only one of my kind on this side of the portal, and the only supernatural being other than Drago. But these two standing in front of me now were definitely mystical creatures of some kind. It was time to find out who, or what, I was dealing with. And what their intentions were towards my people.

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><p><em>Nessie POV<em>

The first thought that ran through my mind when I saw his face clearly, was how much he seemd like an older version of Grandpa Carlisle. When he dropped the hood back, I saw the face of someone seemingly in his early forties - but beyond that I could feel the centuries of wisdom in his warm golden eyes. I wondered if he was a vampire. I couldn't smell anything, but if my theory was right and Jake and I were experiencing this world without our usual supernatural abilities, I wouldn't pick up the scent anyway.

If he was indeed a vampire, he was definitely gifted. I knew he could tell there was something different about Jake and I. Being able to pick that I was different was a no-brainer – I looked nothing like the inhabitants here. But Jake, on the other hand, blended right in. I had seen the golden eyes narrow as the enigmatic stranger contemplated us, like there were a thousand unanswered questions ticking over in his brain.

"I am Renesmee," I began, "and this is Jacob. We have come from- " but Jake interrupted me. I glared at him. Grrrrrr... I didn't like being cut off like that.

"We are lost," Jake stated simply. I was still glaring at him, but he silenced me with a stern look. He obviously thought we should be a bit wary and not tell them everything. Personally, I couldn't see the harm in it. They had saved us from getting mauled by a wild animal, and if anything had shown us nothing but kindness. But seeing as how us being 'lost' was my fault, I decided to back down and go along with Jake's judgement.

The man looked at us kindly. "Renesmee," he said looking at me, and then directing his attention to Jake, "and Jacob. I know both of you are not of this world – do not ask how I know, but trust that I do. I will leave it to you to share your story when you are ready to do so. Accommodation has been set up for you a short distance from here. You are welcome to stay as long as you wish – and as long as you respect our ways. Do no harm to us, and we will not feel it necessary to defend ourselves."

He turned to the copper-skinned man who had been quietly standing in the corner, and I recognised him as one of the hunters who had found us in the forest. I realised then that the hunter had been standing guard over this whole exchange, keeping watch and protecting the older man. "You obviously have many questions, as do I," he said, motioning to the hunter to take us out of the tent. "But conversation is a two-way street. When you are ready to talk, we will resume this discussion." He began to usher us out. "I trust you will find your accommodations satisfactory."

"Wait," Jake interrupted. "We told you our names. The least you can do is tell us yours. Who are you?"

The topaz eyes looked at us, unflinching. "In this realm, I am known as the Cold One," he answered, "but my people call me Merlin."


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N **_– Thank you for reading, and an extra big thank you to Bohemianscientist, who has reviewed each and every chapter of this story so far! _

**All Twilight characters belong to Stephanie Meyer.**

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><p><em>Jacob POV<em>

Ness and I sat in our tent, contemplating what had just happened. Actually, Ness was contemplating – I was just completely spun out. Merlin, _the_ Merlin, Merlin The Magician is totally fucking real - and he's a vampire! Actually, that last part – about him being a bloodsucker – that wasn't so cool. But still, all those stories we grew up with about the sword in the stone, King Arthur, the Knights of the Round Table, they were all true! Wait till I tell the pack about this. They're totally going to shit themselves. Dammit. I just remembered, we're stuck here. Too bad my iPhone doesn't work across dimensions.

"…_my people call me Merlin._" Those five words were enough to get me and Ness interested in what else he had to say. We wanted to know more, but the bloodsucker wasn't giving up any more of his information without a decent trade. So we had that 'conversation' after all. We sat and talked. And talked. And talked. Well, he and Nessie talked. I mostly just listened.

When he had questioned us about 'what' we were, Nessie had pushed back with 'You first - Are you a vampire?' He was taken aback at the directness of her question, but had answered 'Yes', adding that he only fed on animal blood. That would explain the golden eyes. And then he'd wanted to know how we knew. Nessie told him of her being a hybrid. He was fascinated - he had left our world almost three centuries ago, and hybrids weren't known about at that time. He was captivated when we told him about mobile phones and jet planes. And the concept of TV had him completely gobsmacked. I pictured an episode of Star Trek, and imagined that this was what it must have felt like for him, listening to us. Heh he…It was kinda funny.

Merlin was visibly relieved once it became clear to him that we weren't some crazy-ass delinquents hell bent on flattening his village, or spies working for some guy he called Drago. Actually, he was a lot happier to talk once we'd sorted out that minor detail.

He had confirmed Nessie's theory about why this world seemed so muted to us – and explained that were not seeing it through the lens of our usual supernatural enhancements, due to something he called 'the Veil' that suppressed the supernatural in this world. It would also have affected my ability to phase, he said, although he wasn't sure how much since he could still see the shadow of a large wolf superimposed on my body. The Veil had affected some of Merlin's gifts as well, but his vampire traits – such as the cold, marble-like body and inability to age - had remained. He surmised that the Veil could not shut out what is within a being's essence, whatever the fuck that meant.

He also knew of the Volturi, having spent centuries traversing throughout Europe. Nessie mentioned that her grandpa had spent a number of years with the Volturi, but that the Cullens now had their own coven. At the mention of the Cullen name, Merlin had leaned forward suddenly, recognition and urgency evident in his eyes.

"You know of Carlisle Cullen?"

"Of course I do," Nessie responded. "He's my Grandpa."

Merlin seemed stunned. "Has something happened to him?"

Nessie and I both looked at him. "Why would you say that?" we asked in unison.

"Because the only way through the portal is to use the Opening spell. And the grimoire alone contains that spell and the power to wield it. "

"You mean that musty old book? What did you call it – a greem-wa?" I asked.

"Grimoire," Merlin clarified. Sure, sure - whatever. "A wizard's spellbook," he continued, "also known as a 'book of shadows'. It holds all of a witch or wizard's spells and as the powers of its owner grow, so does the power held within the book. My grimoire's power grew such that it drew the attention of Drago, and I could not let it fall into his hands. So I trapped him in this realm by sealing the pathway between our two worlds. I left my grimoire in the other world, in the care of the Stregoni Benefici. He vowed to keep it under lock and key so that its powers could not be misused." The golden eyes contemplated us, "If you are here, then the book must no longer be in Carlisle's charge. Has something happened to him?"

"Carlisle's fine." I answered. The golden eyes narrowed as their owner took in what I'd just said.

Nessie looked mortified. "I'm sorry, Merlin. I broke into Grandpa Carlisle's secret library and went through his things. I picked the lock on the box, and stole the book. I thought it would be fun. It's my fault the portal's open. I was curious. I… I sh..shouldn't have done it." Her bottom lip quivered. Big salty tears balanced on the edge of her eyes, and overflowed down one cheek. I drew Nessie into my arms and held her close. "I'm so sorry, Jake." She sobbed into my chest.

"It's okay, honey. Don't cry." I soothed her. I pressed my lips to her forehead and tightened my arms around her. Then I looked up at Merlin, "I was holding onto your grimoire when the portal swallowed us in. But the book didn't come through with us," I arched an eyebrow questioningly at him.

"That would be because of the existence of the Veil here. The grimoire cannot cross over to this world because it _is_ magic. The Veil would not let it pass - this is a failsafe to keep Drago and the grimoire apart." Great, so that crazy-ass book was lying on the ground outside Nessie's house now.

The upside of this conversation at least was that I found out Merlin could send us back. The catch was we had to wait for a night with no moon. And when you're in a place that has three moons, that's a fairly decent wait. But at least we were eventually going home -Just not right away.

So here we were, sitting in the tent they'd assigned to us, contemplating what had just happened.

Nessie was perched on one of the cushions, her brows knitted together in deep thought. "Careful," I teased her, "you might get wrinkles." She made a face and poked her tongue out at me. "And if the wind changes, your face will freeze like that." I pointed out. Nessie glared at me. Teasing her was so much fun.

I gazed at my Nessie – she looked so beautiful. I felt the pull of the imprint, drawing me towards her, so I got up and strode over to where she was now standing. I put my hand on hers, and with the other I brushed away a stray curl from her face. She leaned into my hand as I cupped her cheek.

"I love you, Ness" I murmured. She looked up at me with those big brown windows to her soul that I knew so well. I marvelled at this beautiful, wonderful woman. What I felt for her was so deep, strong and complex I didn't have the words to describe it. Her smile brightened my every day, and when she wasn't around, I felt like a part of me was missing. We understood each other and were connected, emotionally, spiritually, physically. We were two halves of the same whole. My Imprint. My soulmate. My everything. The girl of my dreams, and every day the first thought in my mind when I woke was of her.

In every breath I took, I felt the connection between us. It was the imprint. But Merlin had said everything supernatural had been cancelled out here. Did that include the magic of the imprint? But my attachment to her was as strong as ever, and my devotion undeniable. I felt different, but my love and my centre of gravity remained focussed on her. My feelings for Ness were the only things that _hadn't _changed. Maybe _this_ was the 'essence' of my being. My heart swelled with love for my Nessie, and I wondered - what I was feeling now – was that the imprint? Or was it something else? But they felt like one and the same. I started to wonder whether the magic of the imprint was more about making a wolf recognise his soulmate, rather than the act itself of binding the souls? I felt so confused. Everything was so messed up. But the one thing that remained clear in all this was that I loved my Ness. Completely, absolutely, unconditionally loved her. And I knew in my heart I always would.

Merlin said he could send us home eventually, so we may as well treat it like 'holiday' of sorts. Since we were stuck here until fuck knows when – apparently the lunar cycles here were fairly unpredictable – we may as well make the best of it. I wondered if Eddie and Bella were freaking out since they found out we were missing. What if they followed us here? Gigantor and Walking Prozac were there when Nessie had come up with this idea – they could easily follow our scents to the treeline near the property and work out what had happened. The mirrors would still be there, and the book would be lying nearby. Everything they needed, all tied up nicely in a neat little package. It wouldn't do anyone any good to have everyone stuck here though. Although, maybe Merlin and Carlisle wouldn't mind catching up for a bit. And at least on this side of the portal Eddie wouldn't be able to read my mind.

"I love you too, Jake," Nessie's voice drew me out of my thoughts, "so much", she breathed as she pressed her lips to my palm. Speaking of reading minds, the thoughts running through mine were starting to get… er, interesting. As the softness of my Nessie's lips brushed against my skin, I felt my heartbeat quicken and the heat rush through my body. I noticed the neckline of her top, and couldn't ignore the milky white suppleness of her breasts, rising and falling with each breath. Her breathing seemed to get heavier, and my own hitched. I felt the familiar tightening in my stomach, and I knew where this was heading. The glow of the firelight drew out the red highlights in her hair, and I pictured the silky strands brushed up against the ridges of my stomach. I remembered the touch of her soft hands splayed across my abs. She bit her bottom lip and looked up at me through her long eyelashes, her eyes darkening. I was totally gonna lose it if I didn't get myself under control. But Nessie knew perfectly well what she was doing to me. I slid my hand along her waist and slipped it over to the small of her back. I pulled her body up flush against mine.

She arched her back against my hand, and pressed her breasts to me. Mmmmm… It felt so good. I looked at her, so beautiful, her lips ever so slightly parted, inviting me in. _Mine_, the wolf roared, _all mine_. I touched my lips to her neck and breathed in my Nessie's delicious scent. I nuzzled just under her jaw, and then moved my attention to her face. I ran my tongue along her bottom lip, sucking it gently. She pressed herself closer to me and deepened the kiss, moaning into my mouth. I couldn't stand it anymore. I wanted her. I needed her. I hitched her legs up around my waist, and collapsed us down onto the bed of cushions.

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><p><strong>AN** – _I can't decide whether to continue some lemony goodness into the next chapter, or stop with the dash of citrus in this one? I would appreciate your thoughts. Please let me know – either via PM or review._

Cheers,  
>~ BlackImprint<p> 


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N **_– A special thank you to everyone who reviewed and/or messaged to let me know how they'd like this chapter to go. Your wish is my command, so here it is … __*Lemon Warning* _

**All Twilight characters belong to Stephanie Meyer.**

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><p><em>Renesmee POV<em>

I felt Jake's strong hands holding me as I fell softly backwards. His lips never left mine as he laid us gently down onto the cushions. He rested his weight on one elbow and ran his other hand down the side of my body, from the underside of my breast, down my waist, the curve of my hip, and then settling his warm touch on my outer thigh. He lifted his head and looked into my eyes, and I saw his own were darkened with desire.

"Ness," the huskiness in his voice was undeniable, "I love you, so…much." He brushed my cheek with his thumb. The warmth of his skin against mine made me shudder. I ran my hands down his back, feeling the muscles ripple against my touch. Reflexively, I arched my back, trying to press as much of myself as I could against him. I felt the … ahem, hard evidence of his need press against my inner thigh.

Still resting his weight on one elbow, Jake reached behind with the other arm and in one swift movement pulled his t-shirt over his head. The shadows from the firelight danced off the contours of his strong, muscled torso and arms. God, he was so beautiful. I pulled my top over my head as Jake's hand reached around to my back and deftly unhooked my bra with a flick of his finger and thumb. I remembered how skilfully those fingers had done other things to me, and I felt the familiar tightening between my thighs. My breathing quickened.

He touched his lips to mine, and I felt his wet tongue trace the inside edge of my mouth, begging for entrance. My lips parted as I allowed him in. I savoured the delicious taste of my Jake, our mouths moving in unison. He cupped my breast, and flicked his thumb across its pink centre. The nipple hardened under his touch. He trailed his hot kisses downwards, to that spot at the base of my collarbone, making me go weak at the knees. He kept tracing his mouth downwards, nipping and nuzzling the soft skin of my breasts. He flicked his tongue across the hardened centre of one and then took it into his mouth, sucking gently. A whimper of pleasure escaped my lips.

I fumbled with the zipper on my jeans, and managed to pull them down before kicking them off. Jake lifted himself up and sat back on his haunches. He grinned at me and his dark eyes twinkled with mischief. I gasped as he reached down and ripped the black lace panties from my body. I loved it when he got all primal like that. God, it was so hot.

He circled his large hands around my waist and then ran them down my hips and then around to cup my backside, caressing my skin with every movement. He nudged my legs apart and placed a soft kiss on my inner thigh. I shuddered. His mouth inched closer to my core, and I felt the wonderful familiar tightening begin to take hold. Then, when he kissed me _there_, I felt my eyes roll back into my head as my body writhed in pure bliss.

"Mmmmm…. " I heard him moan, as he placed hot, open mouthed kisses on the place that had known no other touch but his. He was my first, my last, my always. I felt his warm fingers join his lips and tongue in their skilful ministrations, I felt myself getting close. I teetered on the precipice, relishing the pleasure of almost crossing that delicate line, just before the moment of inevitable surrender. "Ohhhh…" I moaned as I gave in to the pulsing waves rolling through me. As they subsided, Jake lifted his head and pulled himself up so that our faces were level. He touched his lips lightly to mine. I tasted myself on him. He continued kissing me, our mouths moving in perfect harmony.

I ran my hands over his pecs and lats, and then slid them around to caress the smooth skin of his muscled back. He pressed our lower bodies closer together, and I felt his need. I pushed Jake onto his back and started undoing his sweat pants. He lifted his lower body off the cushions as I removed the last bit of clothing separating his body from mine.

This was obviously not the first time I'd seen Jake naked, but the sight of him never ceased to amaze me. He was magnificent. What an outstanding specimen of a man, I mused. And he was mine, all mine. I ran my hands across his chest and down to his rock-hard abs. Mmmmm… I purred to myself. _Everything_ about Jake's body was nice and hard.

I lowered myself onto him, and savoured the delicious feeling of fullness in my centre. He circled his hands around my hips as I began to rock back and forth. I leaned forward and my hair brushed up against the solid ridges of his stomach. His breathing hitched as he tightened his hold on my body.

Then he lifted his back off the cushions so we were in a sitting position, with me still straddling him. He took one of my breasts into his mouth and palmed the other one. I continued rocking back and forth, and he matched my movements. We fit together so perfectly. Every fibre of my being screamed out to the universe how much I loved him, completely, utterly, absolutely loved him. I felt the delicious tension build up again in my core, and my breathing quickened.

He rolled us backward so I was laying back down against the cushions. He reached down and hitched one of my legs up over his arm. He lifted his upper body as he continued thrusting into me. I found myself hungrily admiring his broad chest and strong muscled torso, the sweat glistening off his back in the firelight as he moved in and out of me. I felt myself getting close to that peak again. I let myself reach it, as I surrendered to the wonderful release. "Jake, oh Jake, Yessss…" I cried out, as my walls tightened around him and the waves pulsed through my core again.

His movements started getting more frenzied. "Oh Ness, baby, I'm gonna …. Ohhhhh.." I felt his body tense then relax, as he released into me.

He collapsed onto me, breathing heavily. I felt his heart beating loudly against mine, and I realised I was still panting. He kissed me deeply and then rolled us over so that I was laying on top, and we lay there like that for God knows how long, just savouring the warm afterglow of our lovemaking. His warm hand stroked the skin on my back as he held me close to him.

"Ness?" he whispered

"Mm-hmm," I answered, nuzzling into his neck.

"What are you thinking?"

I absentmindedly traced the contours of the muscles in his shoulders, "Just pondering all the stuff that's happened in the last 24 hours."

"It's ok, honey. We'll get home. We just need to wait awhile for the conditions to be right." He hugged me closer.

"I know," I said. "That's not what's worrying me. Getting home is a definite, so being here is all a bit of an adventure at the moment." I paused for a moment, deliberating whether I wanted to get into this right now. Oh hell, why not – he asked, right? "But I've started wondering about this Drago character. If a sorcerer as powerful as Merlin is worried enough about him to draw down something like this so-called Veil to suppress not only his enemy's power but also his own – it sounds pretty dire."

Jake was silent. The fire crackled, and I watched the glow of its embers. I snuggled into the soothing warmth of the larger body resting underneath mine. I lay still, listening to the sound of his steady breathing and the rhythm of his heartbeat. After a few minutes, he finally spoke. "I wondered about that," he muttered. "That's why I'm not exactly thrilled about us being stuck here."

He continued stroking his fingers up and down my back, and kissed me on the forehead. I felt so safe in Jake's arms. The whole world could be exploding around us, but as long as I was in my Jake's arms, I would always feel safe and protected. I lifted my face to his and pressed my lips to his cheek. I leaned back so that I could look at his handsome face, and realised that he was gazing at me with such intensity my heart skipped a beat. After all these years, he could still have this effect on me. He was looking at me that way again - like I was the most precious thing in the world. He touched his lips to mine, and I pressed my body into his as he deepened the kiss.

I felt him harden inside me.

His dark eyes twinkled as he grinned at me and rolled us over. I smiled back at him. Bring on Round 2!

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><p><strong>AN** - _This was my first attempt at a lemon. Let me know what you think! _


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N **_– Thanks again for reading, and hope you're enjoying the story so far!_

**All Twilight characters belong to Stephanie Meyer.**

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><p><em>Jacob POV<em>

I saw streaks of sunlight snaking through the folds of the tent as I sleepily opened one eye. And then I shut it again just as quickly. Urrrghh… was it morning already? I was lying on my back, with Nessie still asleep, snuggled up against my chest. I felt her softness pressed up against me, and my heart swelled with love for her. I would never get tired of waking up next to my beautiful girl.

I absentmindedly stroked her back as my thoughts wandered back to our conversation of the night before. Nessie had voiced the very same worries that I had been unwilling to say out loud. '… _this Drago character_,' she had mused, '_If a sorcerer as powerful as Merlin is worried enough about him to draw down something like this so-called Veil to suppress not only his enemy's power but also his own – it sounds pretty dire_.'

I didn't want to worry her, so I had bitten my tongue and stopped myself from confessing that I'd also been pondering the very same thing. What I hadn't counted on was the incapability of my mouth to follow my brain's instructions whenever I worried about my Nessie's safety. Before I knew it, the verbal diarrhoea was in full swing – '_I wondered about that' - _for fuck's sake you idiot, shut up, shut up, you're just going to worry her needlessly _– 'That's why I'm not exactly thrilled about us being stuck here_.' I could have kicked myself. But as usual, Ness had taken it all in her stride. I really should give her more credit.

There were still so many unanswered questions, not just about Drago but also this weird – almost religious - fascination that the tribespeople seemed to have with Nessie. I had supposed they were intrigued by her because she looked so different to them and so similar to Merlin, but something was still bothering me. Why was my inner wolf ringing alarm bells again? The talk with Merlin yesterday had all been very interesting, but what guarantee did we have that he was telling us the truth? We would have to take his word for it. But he and the tribespeople had so far shown us nothing but kindness. I decided to give them the benefit of the doubt, for now anyway.

My girl started to stir. "Mmm-hmmm…" she murmured, and stretched herself out, all catlike. Her silky bronze curls were splayed out all around her. She looked so beautiful. "G'morning" she crooned into the crook of my neck.

"Morning, baby." I hummed into her skin as I breathed in her delicious strawberry scent.

She stretched herself out again, and more of her body slipped out from underneath the blanket. I forced myself to think about England, Edward, whatever, anything but how beautiful she looked and how much I loved her, otherwise we were never getting out of this bed.

Nessie rubbed her eyes and smiled at me. "I guess it's time to get up and at 'em, right Jake?"

"Yeah, I guess so," I agreed reluctantly. I could hear voices outside – jeez, these people get up early.

Nessie rolled out of the bed and had wrapped herself in the blanket. She was poking around under the cushions, looking for something. "What're you doing, honey?" I asked.

She turned around and grinned cheekily at me. She was holding a scrap of fabric. A scrap of black, lacy fabric.

"Just looking for the remnants of your handiwork from last night, wolfman." Fuck me, this woman was going to be the death of me. I rolled over onto my stomach. The memory of ripping the panties off Nessie's body last night and now the thought of her going commando were going to keep me face-down on the bed at least until I calmed down. I briefly thought about pulling her back down onto the bed with me, but somehow I didn't think the parents of the kiddies I could hear playing outside would approve of the inevitable outcome _that_ particular invitation would lead to.

I watched Nessie as she continued wandering around the tent, picking up our various pieces of clothing. She found my sweatpants and tossed them at me. "Come on, Jakie-pooz. Rise and shine, let's see what's outside!"

So as usual, I did what I was told. I put the sweatpants on, and then poked my head outside the tent. Merlin was sitting a few metres away, reading a story to a bunch of kids who were gathered around him in a semi-circle.

"Ah good, you're awake," he said, looking up from the book he was reading from. He turned back to the children and said something to them, and they happily dispersed. He returned his attention to me. "We need to talk."

"Sure, sure" I said, "but didn't we already spend hours talking yesterday?"

"I thought it would be good to give you and Renesmee some time to digest all that has happened, before I share the rest of the story with you. Have some breakfast first," he said, handing me a plate of food that had been placed near the door of our tent, "and then we will talk."

Nessie wandered out of the tent just as Merlin disappeared around the corner. "Was that Merlin?" she asked. "What did he want?"

"Apparently there's more to the story." My wolf-sense had been spot-on. "He wants to tell us the rest of it after breakfast."

Nessie had started to go off after him, but I insisted she eat something first. We sat down just outside the tent and smiled our thank you's to the women close by. I assumed they had put out the food for us. They nodded and smiled their acknowledgement. Nessie picked at the cornbread and fruit, but I could tell her attention was elsewhere. She was fidgety because she wanted to know what else Merlin had to tell us, but was pretending to eat some of the food to keep me off her back.

I was sitting there munching away on the last of the cornbread, when something occurred to me. Even though I couldn't phase here, my wolfish appetite didn't seem to have vanished. Great, all I needed now was to get fat. Looks like I'd have to get some physical activity under my belt – well, maybe not literally 'under my belt' – heh he... there wouldn't be any danger of not getting a good dose of _that_ kind of 'under the belt' activity if Ness had anything to do with it. I chuckled to myself, and was met with an arched eyebrow from my Ness.

"What's so amusing?" she asked.

"Nothing," I grinned. Maybe I'd volunteer to help out the tribe with the hunting or something. Had to keep myself looking hot for my Ness. I chuckled again.

"Jake, seriously, what's so funny?"

"Nothing," I grinned again. Nessie poked me in the ribs. "Hey," I laughed, "that tickles! Don't start what you can't finish!" I reached over to tickle her, but she ducked me.

I moved for her again but she jumped back, further this time, and I missed. "Getting old, are we?" she teased. Oh, now she was asking for it. With her half-vampire speed and reflexes suppressed, I caught her easily. I picked her up, tickling her belly with my free hand. She was wriggling mercilessly, and we collapsed in a laughing heap on the ground. I noticed that people had stopped what they were doing and were watching us with amused looks on their faces. We got up and brushed the dust off our clothes, smiling sheepishly.

"Jay-kob," I turned around to see Honiahaka standing behind us. "Come…this..way," he spoke slowly, enunciating each word. Hmmm … Merlin must have been teaching him some basic English. Not bad for a first go. I decided I would have to try and learn some of their language. From what I could tell, some of it sounded very similar to Quileute, so if I was right it shouldn't be too hard to make the connections. Honiahaka continued, "Merlin...want..talk…you," and gestured for us to follow him.

As we walked through the village, the whispers were audible as we passed by. The stares continued, and some of the children even followed us at a distance. Nessie stopped and motioned to them to come closer. At first they were hesitant, but then they timidly inched in. One of the girls shyly handed Nessie a flower. Ness smiled and hugged her a 'thank you'. Then the rest of the kids took this as their cue to flock in. They gathered around Ness, touching her long bronze tresses and admiring her pale alabaster skin. They were so excited when she smiled indulgently at them and held out her hands inviting them to touch her. Ness had made some new friends. That's my girl!

When we eventually arrived at Merlin's tent, he motioned for us to come in. Ness and I sat down on some of the cushions that were scattered near the now smouldering fire. Honiahaka remained close by, observing the conversation as he had done the previous day.

"Is he your bodyguard or something?" I asked Merlin.

"Of sorts," he responded. "Honiahaka's ancestor was my beloved, so his clan are the closest thing I have to family here. As I have protected the people of this tribe, Honiahaka's clan have protected me. The boy worries about leaving me alone with the both of you. He senses there is something different about you, Jacob. And of Renesmee, he is anxious because of the prophecy."

The what? What the fuck? What fucking prophecy? And what did any of that have to do with Ness? And why would that cause anyone anxiety? Was this prophecy the reason for the lingering unease I had felt? My thoughts were going at a thousand miles a minute. The wolf-sense wasn't just tingling, it was practically going nuts.

"What prophecy?" I barked, standing up and taking a defensive stance in front of my Ness. I felt Honiahaka tense up from his position not far away, his eyes darting from me to Merlin. "And what does Ness have to do with it?" My eyes narrowed as I looked at the centuries-old being in front of me. Was this the bombshell he had been holding off on dropping?

Merlin shuffled off and took out an old-looking scroll from the large wooden chest in the corner. Great, another musty old book-like thing. Isn't that what got me and Nessie into this mess in the first place? He unrolled the parchment, and the picture on it stunned me into silence. It was a picture of Ness. No, wait, not of Ness, but of a girl who looked just like Ness. Around the picture was writing of some kind, which I couldn't read.

I looked at the picture, and then at Nessie, and back at the picture again. The likeness was confounding. If I hadn't been fairly certain that the scroll had been in existence at least a few hundred years before Ness was born, I would have sworn the picture on it was of her.

"So now you understand the reaction of the tribespeople when they set eyes on Renesmee," Merlin stated. Duh, I thought - No shit, Sherlock.

Nessie recovered before I did. "What does the writing say?" she asked.

Merlin took a deep breath, and read it out - "He who possesses the hybrid shall win the war."


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N **_– Thanks again for reading. It's taken me longer to update this time - the unfortunate result of real life getting in the way! Next chapter should hopefully be faster! And please check out the banner for the story (link to banner is accessible from my profile) - it's hot off the press and made by the very talented Mehek18 (Thanks sweets - you rock!)_

**All Twilight characters belong to Stephanie Meyer. **

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><p><em>Renesmee POV<em>

I wasn't quite sure how to react, so I just stood there, taking in the surreal scene that was unfolding in front of me.

"But you people didn't even know about hybrids until we arrived," Jake was shouting at Merlin. He was going off his nut – or 'going guano' as he would say. "How can there be a freakin' prophecy about Nessie, when you didn't even know what she is?"

Jake was still standing in front of me, and I could see the rippling across the muscles in his back. If I hadn't known that he couldn't phase, I would have been backing away pretty quickly right about now. As it was, I put my hand on his arm and he calmed visibly at my touch. I peered around from behind him. I seemed to be doing a lot of that lately.

Jake kep staring at Merlin. "Or," his voice lowered to a menacing growl as he stared down the older man, "did you lie to us?"

Jake was almost a good foot taller than Merlin and about twice as wide. But to his credit Merlin didn't seem the least bit shaken. Honiahaka, on the other hand, looked like he was about to jump out of his skin.

"Calm down, young wolf," Merlin declared "and let me explain." He gestured for us to sit down. I eyed the older man suspiciously, as did Jake. As we sat down, Jake pulled me onto his lap and wrapped his arms around me.

"Okay, old man," he said. "Talk."

Merlin sat down across from us. "At the outset," he began, "let me make it clear that I have _not_ lied to you. Everything I have shared with you has been the truth. If I am guilty, it is of is having omitted some of the details."

I felt a growl rumble dangerously in Jake's chest, as I studied Merlin's body language for any telltale signs of deception.

"You must understand," Merlin continued, "what I am about to tell you is a matter of grave importance. You needed to be in the right frame of mind to be able to grasp it, and the consequences. Yesterday, you were still getting used to your new environment, and there was much new information to take in. It would not have been fair to inundate you that way."

"Just get on with it," Jake growled.

"Very well then," Merlin said. "The origins of the prophecy are unknown, but knowledge of its existence is as old as time in the magical world. The scroll I just showed you is one part of a set of ten - the Scrolls of Truth. Each scroll foretells of a great war, and how each war will pan out. Nine of these wars have already come to pass. The final war – the war to end all wars – is different to the others. The final war will determine the course of the world for the remainder of time. If evil is victorious, then darkness will rule. If good triumphs, then peace will reign."

As I listened to Merlin's explanation, it didn't quite make sense to me. If each scroll tells how each war will pan out, then why doesn't this one say just what the outcome of this so-called final war will be? Something was missing, and I was just about to ask when Jake spoke up.

"Doesn't _this_ scroll say how the war will end?" he questioned.

"No," Merlin answered. "The outcome of the final war is unclear." He paused, seemingly for dramatic effect - "Because it is a war brought on, and fought by, mythical creatures."

"You mean like us?" Jake arched an eyebrow quizzically.

"Yes, exactly like us." the old vampire stated solemnly. "The scroll foretells of a great battle between fire and ice, driving the world as we know it to the brink of destruction."

My head began to spin as I took in what we were being told. If I had this right, we were in the middle of some kind of uber-charged supernatural fight to the death between the powers of good and evil, the prize at stake was the future of all mankind, and I'm supposed to be the good luck charm that brings victory to the winning side? I breathed on my hand to see if there were any alcohol fumes. Nope, I was stone cold sober and this was no hallucination. Ahrr crap, it was really happening. Jake eyed me curiously. "You ok, Ness?" his breath hot against my ear.

"I'm not drunk," I sighed. He cocked his head, but then just chuckled and patted my arm, obviously deciding that he didn't want to know where _that_ observation came from. After almost ten years of my obscure remarks, Jake had worked out that following my train of thought was sometimes more trouble than it was worth. He kissed the top of my head and turned his attention back to Merlin.

"Many cultures prophesy an apocalypse of some kind in their mythologies," Merlin continued. "For example, the Vikings' Ragnarok, the Hindus' Kali Yuga, events in the Christians' Book of Revelations, and the Mayans' End of Days. Most of these myths uphold that when the world as we know it ends, a new incarnation of it will then come forth. However, these predictions are but the reverberations through time of the true prophecy – the one foretold in the Scrolls of Truth."

"How do you know any of this is even going to happen?" I was desperate for it all to be some bad joke. "My Aunt Alice has visions, and she says that what ends up actually happening is dependent upon the choices and decisions that an individual makes? Like, if you come to an intersection and decide to turn left instead of going straight ahead, then the ultimate destination also changes."

"The unfolding events that are prophesied in the scrolls are not dependent on the decisions of any one individual or even group of individuals," Merlin explained. "Rather, it is the culmination of the world's own karmic destiny. In other words - fate. The die has been cast, and now the game must play out."

"But I don't get it. Are you saying that it doesn't matter what we do, this freakin' war is inevitable?" Jake bristled. He never believed in taking anything lying down.

"That is exactly what I'm saying," Merlin stated matter-of-factly. "Unlike visions that affect a small group of individuals, the karmic destiny in a prophecy as far-reaching as this one far outweighs the consequences of the decisions that any individual or group of individuals may make. Do not think for a moment that I have not tried to avert the prophecy – I have tried, time and time again, but all that has been to no avail. Already, many of the signs have come to pass." He pulled out the scroll again, and began reading from it -

_The birth from death of a magical being.  
>A conception set in motion by supernatural forces.<br>The rise of the last great tyrant.  
>The fragmentation of two worlds.<br>An uneasy truce between heat and cold.  
>The birth of one who is born of life and death.<br>The bonding of the great red wolf.  
>The arrival of the wolf and the hybrid.<br>The great general will rise.  
><em>

My god, I thought. The last half of those entries on the list read like a who's who of milestones in Jake and my lives – the treaty between my family and the wolves, my birth, Jake imprinting on me, and now our arrival here. I had no idea what that last entry was about, but if what Merlin was pushing about the prophecy was true, I was certain we'd find out soon enough. A chill ran up my spine and I shuddered. Jake tightened his arms around me.

Merlin looked at us sadly. "I unwittingly had a hand in contributing to this chain of events – with the first domino to fall being my turning to a vampire."

The realisation dawned on me. "You drew down the Veil so that the supernatural powers couldn't start the war."

"That I did, Renesmee." Merlin exhaled tiredly. He looked so drawn, the weight of the world seemingly on his ancient shoulders. "I thought I could avert the apocalypse by closing down the path between the two worlds, and suppressing the supernatural. But it could have been all in vain. As you can see, most of the signs have now come to pass, especially since your arrival here."

Merlin continued, "The prophecy came close to being fulfilled about a thousand years ago. The son of a king, conceived through a tryst set in motion by magical means, was to become the great evil that would rise destroy the world. But I took him away as a babe so he would not be corrupted by those around him, and instead had him counselled and taught in all that was good. By the time he returned to his kingdom to draw the sword from the stone and claim his rightful place on the throne, the king who stood before his people was not the oppressor predestined to drive his country to war and bring about the destruction of the world, but a good, kind and just man who ruled with fairness and honour. It could easily have gone the other way, but for the time being the apocalypse had been averted. For a time, it was feared that Arthur's son Mordred would take the place of the prophesied evil, but he was killed at the hands of his own father. The grief that this inflicted on Arthur, combined with the betrayal of his wife with his most trusted knight, was so great that he never fully recovered. Arthur's knights went in search of the Holy Grail, to try to bring their king back from the brink, but to no avail. The glory of Camelot came tumbling down, before finally fading into the shadows and mists of myth and legend."

"And so," the ancient vampire continued, "after my time with Arthur and Camelot, I spent the next few centuries wandering the continents, always vigilant for the next iteration of events. I knew that, while the way things had panned out had averted the apocalypse at least for the time being, it was only a matter of time before the prophecy reset itself and resumed its course. As I pointed out before – the karmic destiny of a whole world far outweighs the upshot of any decisions an individual may make."

Merlin paused before continuing. "Little did I know, the Great Dragon would lay in wait, biding his time until the stars had aligned just right. By the time he emerged as the true last great tyrant, it was almost too late."

"How many others know about the prophecy?" Jake asked. For someone who normally lost his temper and had a general modus operandi of fighting his way out of a situation, I thought he seemed to be taking all this remarkably well.

"The tribespeople know," Merlin answered. "It was necessary so as to ensure their safety, and so they would understand the importance of keeping away from Drago and his men."

"You mentioned him yesterday." Jake's eyes narrowed. My Jake was in full Alpha-mode and sizing up the situation. "What relevance does Drago have to all of this?"

When Merlin responded, his voice was as cold as the lips from which the words fell - "I thought it would have been obvious by now - he is the Great Dragon."

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><p><strong>AN** - The conversation's not over yet! The continuation into next chapter will be from Jake's point of view. Please R&R! Nessie and Jake love reviews, and so do I! :)

Cheers,  
>~ BlackImprint<p> 


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N **_– Thanks again for reading!_

**All Twilight characters belong to Stephanie Meyer. **

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><p><em>Jacob POV<em>

I may have been feigning calmness on the outside, but inside the wolf was doing its best goddamn freak-out dance. What the hell..? The bringer-of-the-apocalypse was here? And I couldn't phase because Magic Vamp had abracadabra'd away my wolf? How was I supposed protect my Ness? But going ape-shit at the one individual we could reasonably communicate with was probably not a good idea. So instead I took a deep breath and tried to get as much information as I could out of the bloodsucker sitting across from me.

I assessed the information I had so far: 1) There was a prophecy; 2) an almighty war was brewing; 3) its outcome would determine the fate of the world; 4) the crazy-ass bastard in desperate need of a smack-down was someone, or something, called Drago/the Great Dragon; and 5) Nessie was basically the winning lottery ticket. Everything was so much simpler when you devolved it down to five key points. But trouble is, nothing was simple about this whole fucked-up situation.

Let's add a few complicating factors: 6) I couldn't phase; 7) I had no fucking idea what Drago / the Great Dragon / crazy-ass bastard in need of a smack-down might be planning; 8) our supernatural enhancements were on hiatus; 9) we were stuck in this other dimension until the goddamn moons decide to go into hibernation; 10) we'd have to take Merlin at his word until we could learn the language; 11) every world-ruler wannabe would be trying to get their hands on Nessie; 12) to coin a phrase - _the end of the world is nigh_; 13) did I mention the 'no powers' catch?

I took a deep breath. "Tell me more about Drago," I said to the vampire sitting across from me.

"Drago, like yourself, is a shapeshifter," he replied. "You can probably guess what his other form is. Other than that, there's not much to tell really," he stated in a no-nonsense tone. I eyed him sceptically. Is he fucking kidding me? No way there isn't more to tell about Captain Doomsday. The bitterness in the old vamp's voice when he spoke about Drago was obvious. What bothered me was that he was trying to hide it. There was more here than what he was letting on and the warning bells on my bullshit radar were going off big time, but pursuing it right now was unlikely to be productive. I thought it wiser to cool my heels and get what information I could out of him in the meantime.

"So where does Nessie fit into all this," I decided to try a different approach, "apart from obviously featuring as Lady Luck?"

"Once Drago finds out about Renesmee, he will be doing everything he can to get his hands on her." Thank you, Captain Obvious. I was about to snarl at him to tell us something we _didn't_ know, but Nessie shot me one of those looks that silently said I'd be in trouble with her if I did. Merlin didn't seem to notice –or he _pretended_ not to notice - and continued talking, "There are too many variables to be able to determine with any certainty what the path to war will look like. But at least things are starting to take shape a little more clearly now." Ok, well this was more like it - something potentially useful. "For example, the prophecy speaks of a hybrid, but now that we know the hybrid in question is a vampire/human hybrid, that changes everything."

"What do you mean?" Nessie asked. She was transfixed, her big brown eyes were like pools of hunger for more knowledge as she listened to all this.

"As I said yesterday," Merlin answered, "when I left the other world, it was not thought possible for a vampire and human to conceive. Until now, I had no inkling that the 'hybrid' foretold in the prophecy would be one born of human and vampire parents. But this turn of events makes sense," he mused," – since the hybrid has been foretold to be _one who is born of life and death_."

Ok, I didn't know where the bloodsucker's train of thought was going - it was still clear as mud to me anyway, what the hell the prophesied hybrid being a vampire/human had to do with steering the path to anything? "That still doesn't explain how the lynchpin of this prophecy being a vampire/human hybrid changes everything?" I pointed out.

"Sorry, sorry, I'm rambling again," Merlin muttered absentmindedly. He paused briefly. "Oh yes, that's right", he got himself back on track, "Well, with the prophesied war being one between fire and ice, there was a very real chance that the hybrid could have been a half-dragon. If that were to eventuate, it would have placed Drago very much on the front foot. As he and I - at least until the two of you arrived - were the only two supernatural beings in this realm, a half-dragon hybrid would had to have been a child of Drago, in which case he most definitely would then 'possess the hybrid.' In terms of how things appear to have headed now, it still remains open to interpretation as to whom the ultimate victor will be."

"So if Nessie and I leave and there's no chance of either side 'possessing' her," I suggested, "the prophecy should halt, right? You said that we could go back through the portal on the next night of no moon. All we have to do is stay out of Drago's way until then. You've dodged the prophecy once before, why not again?"

Merlin sighed. "If only it were that simple, Jacob." And then he got up suddenly and started pacing distractedly around the tent. Why was he being so weird all of a sudden? "You may have noticed that what you see around you is very similar to your own world. The reality is that both worlds are two halves of the same whole – they are separated, yet still one and the same. What happens in one world is reflected into the other – much like a mirror – which is the pathway between the two worlds."

My head started to hurt again. I was _this_ close to channelling Edward and going the nose-bridge pinch. Something didn't feel quite right about all this – maybe it was Merlin getting seemingly distracted all of a sudden combined with the feeling of being caught between a rock and a hard place. I felt the tension in my jaw and sensed the muscles in my neck tighten. I must have been showing my frustrations more than I realised, because the old bloodsucker stopped pacing and took a deep breath as he regarded me warily. "Look," he said, as if he were speaking to a petulant child. I resisted the urge to punch him. "In essence, both worlds are overlayed onto each other, being but a ghostly shadow to the other. What happens in one will affect the other. Even if you leave here, the events have been set in motion in this realm already, and their outcomes will pour through to your own world. Drago may even already know of your arrival here – the reverberations on the space-time continuum when you both passed through the portal were felt by me. I would not be surprised if Drago felt it too. It was fortunate that Honiahaka and his hunting party were the ones who found you in the forest, and not Drago's men."

"To tell you the truth," Merlin continued, "much of the prophecy did not make sense to me - that is, until Renesmee told me her story yesterday. Fire – that much is obvious – corresponds to the Great Dragon. Ice – I had surmised, would match up with the vampire. But therein lies the conundrum – with the exception of Stregoni Benefici and myself, those who call themselves _vampire_ have traditionally been the villains as far as humankind is concerned. I had often wondered if this ultimately meant then, that it would be me who stood on the other side of the battlefield to face down the Great Dragon yet again? And if not me, then who? The Volturi? In such a battle, which side would be defined as good, and which would be evil? This is the question that has perplexed me for so many centuries. Or," he paused and took a breath, "I have often wondered whether the final war would be one of evil vs evil?"

I realised by his verbal meanderings that the old vamp's thoughts were starting to drift again. One interesting thing he did say though was the reference to facing down Drago _again_. I made a note to follow-up on that later. It was Nessie who brought him back to the present.

"Merlin," she gently beckoned him back with her voice, "are you all right?"

"Yes, yes, just a bit tired. After so many centuries, it feels that this is all finally coming to a head. I am anxious, but at the same time strangely relieved." He started getting that faraway look in his eyes again. "I am sorry," the old vampire muttered distractedly, "but I need to rest. Do you mind if we continue this a bit later?"

I thought it strange that a vampire needed to rest, but I supposed that maybe it could have been a side-effect of his powers being suppressed. Not entirely convinced, I responded "Sure, sure," anyway, and watched as he shuffled off and began sifting through the papers that were layered onto one of the many chests lining the walls of the tent.

As I contemplated Merlin, Nessie got out of my lap and walked over to the old vamp. She placed a hand on his shoulder in a gesture of comfort. He smiled at her kindly and patted her hand. "Do not fret, child," he re-assured her. "I will not let any harm come to you." It was impossible for me to not soften when he was being so nice to my Ness, "Nor, I daresay will your wolf." The ancient eyes looked at me knowingly. "In the meantime, there are many matters that I must revisit in these old journals, and through doing so I hope to be able to find some clarity on the many questions that still hang unanswered. Once I have had a chance to go over some of these again, we will continue our counsel."

Merlin gestured to Honiahaka, and he moved to escort us out of the tent. As we walked out, I saw out of the corner of my eye the old vampire hunched tiredly over his table, poring over an old-looking manuscript and muttering something to himself. Even though Merlin physically looked like he was in his early forties, in truth he was centuries old – perhaps even millennia. He had seen and experienced so much in his long existence and, if what he was telling us was true, he had spent most of it fighting against a power much bigger than all of us. No bloody wonder he was exhausted! I still had some questions that needed answering, but I'd save those for next time.

As we walked away from Merlin's tent, I realised that I wasn't the only one who was still pondering what had just transpired. Nessie was quiet, her brows furrowed in deep thought. "You're gonna get wrinkles, Ness" I teased. She poked her tongue out at me, so I pushed another button, "and then you won't be hot anymore..." but I didn't get to finish what I was saying, because Nessie shut me up by planting a kiss on my lips. I grinned like an idiot. "Ok Ness, even if you're wrinkly, you'll still be hot to me." She smirked at me. Yeah, ok, I was a pushover when it came to her.

I held Nessie's small pale hand in my larger russet one as we walked back in companionable silence the rest of the way to our tent. So much had been revealed to us in the last hour, and it was going to take some processing. If the apocalypse was really on the horizon, I needed to come up with a plan.

It killed me to admit this, but I had no fucking idea where to even start.


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N **_– Hi everyone – Sorry it's taken so long to update this time. I'd been cogitating on another one-shot (which I ended up posting about a week and a half ago – called 'So Perfect' – please check it out if you have time!), and then when I finished that and sat down to write this chapter, all hell broke loose at the day job! Anyway, here we are, finally – so thank you for following the story this far, for your patience despite the slow update… and for reading all the way to the end of this very long author's note! _:)

_Cheers,  
>~ BlackImprint<em>

**All Twilight characters belong to Stephanie Meyer. **

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><p><em>Nessie POV<em>

It had been three days since Merlin dropped the bombshell. Three whole I-think-I'm-going-to-shoot-myself-I'm-so-bored days.

Jake seemed to be taking this whole turn of events remarkably well. Of course he was, I thought cynically. He wasn't the poster child for this supposed tug-of-war for world dominance, was he? That privilege was mine, all mine. Ugh, why was I being such a petulant child about all this? It wasn't Jake's fault we were here - that culpability lay squarely upon my shoulders. But in any case, did we ever have a chance? In the 'gospel according to Merlin', we would have wound up here irrespective of what choices we made. I couldn't decide whether that particular thought gave me comfort or caused me even more unease. If you ask me, the whole 'this is fate' thing was a bit daunting, and it had me on edge. Which brings me to another issue - Jake's seeming lack of discomfort with this whole situation – he was never one to take anything lying down, but he was just a little too accepting of all this for my liking.

While I knew that he was worried about me – he had refused to let me out of his sight during the day, and every night he slept holding me close to him, his arms like iron bars protecting me from the things that go 'bump' in the night - he didn't seem too fazed by everything else. Actually, his being worried about me wasn't such a bad thing – while his body temperature wasn't as warm as it normally would have been, it was still warm enough to ward off the chilly nights. The hard contours of his strong body as they moulded thmselves to mine were also pretty helpful on that front too – _Mmmrowrrrr_, I found myself purring…..

Earlier today though, I had finally put my foot down and insisted that Jake cease and desist with hovering over me, and go and make friends with some of the locals. He'd finally agreed to go off and spend time with the hunters, once I swore black and blue that I wouldn't wander far from Merlin's watchful eye.

And so ... that was pretty much the reason why, here I was, perched on one of the cushions in Merlin's tent, watching the ancient vampire shuffle back and forth between piles of parchment as he muttered to himself and made notes. He had barely spoken to me – or to anyone, for that matter – since that day, three days ago. He just kept poring over the old scrolls and emerging from his figurative cocoon at unpredictable intervals to wander off into the forest and disappear for hours on end. I had supposed that he must have gone off to hunt.

And now that I thought about it, it occurred to me that I hadn't hunted since we arrived. Actually, the strange thing was that I hadn't been able to stomach anything except bread and fruit since we'd been here. The craving that should have been burning in the back of my throat would have driven me to distraction by now. I wondered if my seeming disinterest in blood had to do with the Veil and the suppression of my vampire half. But that wouldn't explain why Merlin still needed to hunt?

I hadn't seen Jake for a few hours now, and I guessed that he and 'Pack No.2' as I had nicknamed them, were roaming the forest somewhere, doing whatever it was that boys did. It was funny to watch actually, how they had all gelled so easily. The young men of the tribe had naturally gravitated towards Jake, and within hours they were following him around and hanging off his every word - to the extent anyway, I mused, that any of them understood a word that Jake was saying. I guess the Alpha gene was strong in any dimension!

I continued to watch Merlin as he pulled out a scroll here, flicked through the pages of a book there, scribbled strange things onto parchment, and muttered things to himself in a language I didn't understand.

And I tried, yet again, not to keel over from sheer boredom.

* * *

><p>It's been four days since OMFG-We-Got-Told-Out-About-The-End-Of-The-World-Today Day.<p>

Nothing particularly exciting had happened since then. I don't know exactly what I was expecting. Considering I was supposedly the cornerstone of this so-called prophecy, very little had happened that involved me. Not that everything was about me, but you know, some interaction might have been called-for. I was so bored, I had even started trying to see how many languages I could say 'Gee, I'm absolutely bored crapless' in.

Jake was off with Pack No.2 again, and I had absolutely no-one to blame for being stuck with my own company but myself.

I was sprawled on a rug on the floor of Merlin's tent, watching him rummage about in his papers and do exactly the same stuff he'd done the day before. And the day before that.

I wished there was cable TV here or something.

"Huhhhh…" I sighed. No one noticed, except for an old owl-like creature that had looked up from its perch in the corner of Merlin's tent.

* * *

><p>Day Five and still nada. This is starting to get old. And I'm still sooooo bored.<p>

* * *

><p>It's been a week. I'm still bored. But now I'm restless too. At least there's movement on <em>that<em> front – bored _and_ restless. Wow.

The women of the tribe had taken me under their wing and tried to involve me in their activities, but to tell you the truth, I just wasn't that interested. There's only so much gathering and cooking and sewing that a girl can do. And when that was done, I could always sit in Merlin's tent and watch him do the same stuff he'd done for the last week. Oooh, excitement, NOT. Jake on the other hand, seemed to have embraced this new lifestyle with enthusiasm. I was starting to question the wisdom of having convinced him to hang so much with the hunters.

And so, here I was, still bored. Bored stiff. Bored to tears. Bored to death. How can I bore thee? Let me count the ways. Great, now I was so bored I was even bootlegging lines from Elizabeth Barrett Browning.

I was hanging out in Merlin's tent again. I couldn't even read his books, since they were written in a script that I didn't understand. I would have asked him to teach me, but I thought that solving this apocalypse mystery was more important than keeping me entertained. I don't know what I was expecting. It's not like the world had suddenly changed because we now knew its secrets. Life went on. All that had changed was the lens through which we viewed it.

I was amusing myself with some cards that Merlin had given me to play with, when Jake swept into the tent, all manly and hot and stuff. I couldn't take my eyes off him, and my mouth involuntarily curved upwards into a smile. "Ness," he called out to me, scooping me up in his arms and kissing me. Ooh yeah, the day just got a whole lot better!

"About time you came back," I pretended to huff at him as I playfully batted his chest. He kissed the top of my head and beamed at me indulgently. Then he set me back down on the floor and turned to my vampiric babysitter.

"Merlin, do you mind if I take Ness for a while?" The ancient being just nodded without looking up from what he was doing.

Jake took me by the hand and led me out to the edge of the forest bordering the village. He stopped under a large shady tree, and pulled me into his lap as he settled himself down to sit on the grass. He wrapped his arms around me so that my back was pressed up against his broad chest, and nuzzled my neck. "I'm sorry I've been neglecting you honey," his breath was warm against my neck as he spoke, "but I needed to spend some time with the boys so that I could learn their language." I soaked up the contentment of being close to my Jake again, and leaned back into him.

"The boys?" I smirked. "Don't you mean 'the pack'?

"Huh..?"

"Come on, Jake – you can't tell me that you haven't thought it. They look so much like your Pack brothers back home. You guys _must_ be related. And didn't you say that you thought the language here was very similar to Quileute? What if you all have the same ancestors? And if Merlin hadn't closed off the path between the two worlds, maybe you might all be one people?" I was on a roll. Almost a week with only myself for company had turned me into a right little chatterbox.

Jake didn't say anything, but his silence was contemplative. When he spoke after about a minute, his voice was low. "Okay Ness, yeah - maybe the thought did cross my mind. But it's just too much of a co-incidence, don't you think?"

"What about anything here would surprise you if it was such a co-incidence?" I countered. "Everything's just all so surreal and strange, like we're moving around in some dream state – and before you start up at me, yes, I know it's probably because our supernatural abilities have been suppressed and so of course the world around us seems muted – but still, it's a kinda weird feeling, ya know?" Like I said before, almost a week of my own company and my brain had been working overtime, trying to make sense of all this. And seeing as how I tended to think better out loud, poor Jake had just become my sounding board.

Jake suddenly got to his feet, and pulled me up with him. Really? Was my conversation that boring? I must have had a funny look on my face, because by way of seeming explanation he said "I hear what you're saying Ness, and believe me, this is a conversation that's going to be continued, but I want to show you something first, before the sun goes down. The 'pack'" he grinned as he continued, "showed it to me this morning, and I want to share it with you. C'mon, it's not too far from here."

We strolled hand in hand as he led me deeper into the forest. As we slowed down, I heard the sound of running water. When the trees thinned out into a clearing, what I saw took my breath away. It was a beautiful inland lagoon, and the water was so clear and blue. Flickers of sunlight danced on the water's surface, making it sparkle like some deep liquid sapphire. There was a waterfall to one side of the lagoon, and the whole scene was like something out of a picture postcard.

"Wanna go for a swim?" Jake grinned. Before I could answer, he'd picked me up and taken a running leap into the water. As we resurfaced, I spluttered at him "Aww Jake, now we're soaked. And what're we going to do about our clothes? They're all wet."

"Heh he," he grinned at me, his dark eyes twinkling, "all part of my evil plan. Now you have to take them off…" his voice trailed off as he planted a burning kiss on that spot just below my jaw. With one hand he cupped my backside and lifted me up so I was face to face with him, and instinctively I wrapped my legs around his waist. With his other hand, he held my upper body flush against his as he licked the inner edge of my lips, begging for entrance.

Oh yeah, the day just got _really_ good.

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><p><strong>AN** – _Okay, so in case it wasn't obvious, there will be a healthy dose of citrus in the next chapter. Consider yourselves warned! _:)


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N **_– Lemon warning! _(^_^)

**All Twilight characters belong to Stephanie Meyer. **

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><p><em>Jacob POV<em>

I drank in the softness of Nessie's skin against mine, as I ran my tongue along the inner edge of her lips, tasting their sweetness. She parted them and deepened the kiss, and instinctively I responded. Through the thin fabric of her dress, I could feel the warmth rising between her legs, as she tightened her thighs around my waist and pressed herself closer against my stomach. She lifted her head slightly and leaned back, peering at me coquettishly through her long eyelashes.

"I've missed this," she smiled.

"What, getting dunked in water?" I pretended to tease her. She batted my shoulder in playful rebuke.

"Oh Jake, you're impossible sometimes! I meant this – _us_ – just being together. I've felt so alone this last week." I was about to point out that she had never been left alone, but Nessie silenced me with a deftly placed finger on my lips. I fought the urge to lick it. "And yes," she continued, "I know that there was always someone with me, but you not being around made the days seem… well, empty."

I felt the warmth welling up inside me, and I couldn't help the smile that curved my lips upwards. My girl missed me. Well I sure as hell missed her too, and I was gonna make it up to her now. I felt my heart swell with love for her as I looked at my wonderful, amazing Ness.

I watched as a droplet of water rolled down her neck and over the soft swell of her milky white cleavage. My gaze trailed down to the wet fabric that clung to her body, outlining every perfect curve of her full breasts and her hardened nip… Aghhh _fuck me_, Nessie wasn't wearing a bra! I'd better get myself under control. If I didn't, then my plan to make it up to her for being AWOL for so much of the last week was going to last a whole pathetic three minutes. _Hmmph_, I felt the wolf smirking at me. I pushed it back to the side. Funny –my inner wolf had never seemed to be more than just a 'presence' lurking in the depths of my consciousness, but since we'd been here it was almost as if it was becoming more distinct. Maybe it was trying to claw its way out of the cage the Veil had confined it to. And the wolf was distinctly _very_ conscious of Nessie, beautiful, amazing Nessie, my love, my mate, my Ness. My beautiful, perfect Ness.

_Mine_, the wolf hummed contentedly.

I touched my lips to Nessie's again, and felt her need as she immediately deepened the kiss and arched her back, pushing herself closer against me. She was so tiny compared to me that, with one of the hands I had cupping her ass, I was easily able to slide it further down and forwards, seeking entrance to her soft centre. I pushed aside the skimpy fabric of her underwear and felt her hot, wet need for me. I pushed in further, and was rewarded with a whimper of pleasure from my angel's lips. The sound triggered a reaction in me that I knew all too well, and I felt the familiar tightening in my stomach start to take hold. Nessie's kisses became more urgent, as she held me closer to her and fisted my hair. Knowing that she wanted me so much made me want her even more badly. I needed to look at her, to see her, to marvel in the perfection that was _her_. And almost as if she had read my mind, Nessie broke away from the kiss and leaned back slightly. She pulled the dress over her head and flung it lazily onto a nearby rock. I drank in every perfect, irresistible inch of her.

"Fuck Ness, you're so beautiful," I told her, "and I can't believe you're mine."

_Mine,_ the wolf echoed again.

"You ain't so hard on the eyes yourself, Jacob Black," Nessie smiled, and leaned into me.

I nuzzled just below her jaw and flicked my tongue lightly over the pulse points in her neck. She moaned again, and tightened her thighs around my waist. My hands were now cupping her tantalisingly full breasts. I played with the pink centre of one with my thumb, and took the other in my mouth. I felt the heat rising from her again, and another moan of pleasure escaped from her lips.

I started moving us towards the waterfall. As we pushed through the curtain of water and the grotto behind it came into view, Nessie smiled when she saw the blankets and cushions laid out on one of the large flat rocks.

"You did this?" she beamed at me.

"I did," I smiled. "For you, Ness." Anything for you, Ness. Anything and everything. Forever and always.

I gently laid her down onto the blanket and cushions, and she stretched herself out and lifted her hips up to let me remove her panties. Lingerie shops were few and far between here, so I was obediently abiding by Nessie's new rule that 'T_here will be_ _no more panty ripping until we get home, Jake. Understood?_' I loved it when she got all bossy like that. It was hot. And she was getting _me_ pretty hot and bothered right now.

I pulled off my shirt and pants, and climbed onto the blanket, settling myself on top of Nessie. I propped myself up on one elbow, and flicked my tongue over her bottom lip. She moaned into my mouth. I grabbed both of her wrists, and with one hand pinned them above her head without breaking the kiss. The sudden movement surprised her, but she didn't try to wriggle out of the hold. With my other hand, I traced her soft skin, from the underside of her breast, down her torso, past the flat plane of her stomach, and then sliding my fingers further down, _into_ her.

I caressed my Nessie's familiar warmth, as my fingers slid in and out while I massaged her pleasure spot with my palm. She twisted and moaned, and I loved that my girl was making those sounds because of me. I let go of her wrists and starting palming her breast with my now free hand, tugging and pulling at its hardened centre, and then my mouth and tongue joined in, nipping and tracing circles around the pink nub.

I moved my attentions downwards and trailed kisses down Nessie's stomach, her hip bone, and then to that gentle curve just above her centre. I nudged her legs apart, and placed a burning kiss _there_. I felt her thighs quiver as I placed slow, tender kisses around her warm, wet centre. My lips continued gently sucking while my tongue massaged her heat and traced circles around her favorite spot. Then I felt her breathing quicken and her body tense.

"Oh, oh, Jaaake…" she moaned, as she writhed and twisted. I watched her ride the wave, her breathing hitching heavily as she twisted and moaned with pleasure, and I loved that I was the reason for it.

I held her close, and once her breathing slowed, I started kissing the soft skin of her thighs, moving upwards towards her stomach, then up to the crest of her rounded breasts. She reached up and pulled me towards her, kissing my lips that were still moist with the delicious taste of her.

"Ness, I love you… love you, so much," I murmured.

I pressed myself against her, holding her close. I propped myself up on one elbow and placed soft, tender kisses on her lips. I continued running my other hand over her perfect body, feeling the softness of her skin beneath my fingertips.

Our kisses became more heated, my hot tongue pushing hungrily inside her mouth as she kissed me back. I felt Nessie's need heighten again, and my own become overpowering. I was so hard I thought I was gonna explode.

She looked me straight in the eyes. "Fuck me, Jake," she commanded, "Now." The girl must have read my mind.

I didn't need to be told twice. I pushed my knees between her naked thighs to nudge them open, and pulled her up against me. I pressed myself into her soft, sweet tightness. She felt amaaaazing, like some kind of molten bliss. I loved the contrast of my larger darker body against her small pale one as I pushed slowly in and out, and she writhed and moaned beneath me. Our movements became more frenzied as I started to thrust heavily and fully inside her, our bodies matching each other's rhythms.

And then I needed more.

Without breaking the connection, I lifted her leg and spun her around so she was on all fours in front of me. I tilted her ass up towards me and wrapped my large hands around the curve of her hips as I bucked into her from behind.

_Mine_, the wolf thundered.

"Ohhh… Jaake, yes, yes… Ahhhh…" I felt her jerk and then convulse around me, waves caressing me from deep within. Her whole body was shaking.

That was it, I was a goner. I shot my load, and continued bucking into her as she milked every last drop from me.

We collapsed in a sweaty heap onto the blanket.

"That," I breathed, "was-" I paused, trying to catch my breath and searching to find words to do it justice…

"Amazing," she finished my sentence, smiling.

Yes, my Ness, you certainly are.

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><p><strong>AN**- _Since posting this chapter this morning, I've since separated the last part (the non-lemony bits) and moved it to instead become the first part of the next chapter. Big thank-you to dkgors and Writer-in-the-making16 for your reviews and feedback - You guys were absolutely right! _


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N** - _Hi everyone - some of you may recognise the first part of this chapter from the last part of the previous chapter. This is because I've done a bit of a re-write and moved it into here instead. **There is new stuff though - it begins about half-way down, starting at Nessie's POV.**_

_cheers,  
>~ BlackImprint<em>

**All Twilight characters belong to Stephanie Meyer**

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><p><em>Jacob POV<em>

It was starting to get dark. We'd been lying there for a while now, just savouring the closeness of each other. Nessie's back was pressed up against my chest as I held her and nuzzled her hair.

"Ness, c'mon – it's time to start heading back," I whispered.

"Uh-uh. Just a bit longer," she hummed. "I like it here."

"We can come back tomorrow if you want," I offered. "But it's starting to get dark now, and we really should head back." I started to get up, and I pulled her up with me.

Nessie huffed at me. "How are we going to get back though the waterfall without getting our clothes wet again, Jake? I'm not schlepping all the way back to the village in wet clothes, you know."

"Well," - I was officially going to get some brownie points now – "I put a change of clothes for us under the trees." She smiled up at me. Oh yeah, I did good. "Did you think I'd ever let you walk around in wet clothes, honey?"

She smiled and wrapped her arms around my neck, "Oh Jake, you're the best." I grinned like a crazy person. Yeah, I was crazy – crazy for her, crazy about her, crazy in love with her. I lifted my Ness up and touched her lips to mine. My heart swelled with love for her. Funny, I thought – the wolf was caged, but the pull of the imprint was strong as ever. The Veil hadn't dulled its magic at all.

At this point, I found myself musing - was the imprint real? Maybe that was the answer- it _was_ real, and that was why the suppression of magic in this realm hadn't impacted how I felt about Ness. The imprint wasn't some kind of supernatural phenomenon. If anything, it was the most natural thing in the world. So maybe that's why the imprint bond feels as pure and powerful to me right now as the day it was first forged between us. I held my Nessie closer to me, and savoured the wonderful feeling of contentment that just being near her brought to my soul.

We started gathering up our things, leaving the blanket and cushions behind at Nessie's insistence - _'in case we need them again'_ she had suggested cheekily - and made our way to where I'd stashed our change of clothes. The sun was beginning to set, and the sky was ablaze in a symphony of pink, yellow and orange. It made a beautiful backdrop, as I pulled Nessie into my arms for a last lingering kiss before we started the short walk back to the village.

"Today was the best surprise ever, Jake." Nessie beamed at me. The fact that she was happy made me feel like I was glowing with happiness too.

I was so focussed on my Ness that I didn't see them until it was too late.

I heard a sound behind us and I spun around quickly, but I wasn't fast enough. Before I could react, there was a sharp blow to my head, then another to my stomach and repeated hits to my back. Then my legs were knocked out from under me by a violent force, and I was on my knees. I felt the sensation of warm liquid on my hands and body, and I realised it was blood. Nessie was screaming. Someone was holding onto her, and she was fighting to get away. _Get the fuck away from her_, the wolf bellowed. I counted three, four, seven attackers all up, and my mind raced as I tried to work out how best to protect my Ness. Instinctively, I scrambled to my feet, but I was knocked down by another sharp blow to my head. More blood. On my hands. On my body. Everywhere, so much blood. Through the haze I saw that Nessie wasn't bleeding. No-one else was bleeding. This must be my blood. Nessie was being dragged away. I forced my legs to stand as I tried to give these fuckers a thumping they wouldn't forget. Then there was a sharp pain again, but this time it felt different. I saw I'd been knifed in the chest. I tried to pull it out, but I was bleeding too much. I felt myself falter and fall to the ground, and this time I couldn't get up. The last thing I remember was hearing Nessie scream my name as she scratched and clawed, trying to get away from them. I tried again to get to her, but my body wouldn't move.

And then the dark nothingness engulfed me.

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><p><em>Renesmee POV<em>

"Jake, JAKE... Let me go, you MORONS!" I could hear myself shouting. My Jacob was on his knees, blood streaming from his head and body. He got to his feet again, but they knocked him down. And then to my horror, I saw one of them drive a knife into his chest.

"Jake, my god, oh my god, Jake, JAKE..." I cried. I struck at my captors. I bit. I scratched. I screamed. But it was useless.

The last thing I saw through the hot tears stinging my eyes was my Jake, lying motionless on the ground, bloodied and broken.

And there was nothing I could do to help him.

One of the bastards had heaved me over his shoulder and was making a fast exit. All I saw was the blur of the ground as he ran, dodging rocks and trees while ignoring my best efforts to stop him. I wasn't going to go easily. I kept hitting out, biting, clawing, screaming. I was going to make this as difficult for them as possible, and at the first chance I had, I was going to make a run for it. I might not have my half-vampire speed, but I could still run pretty fast.

A short distance away, my kidnapper slowed down and I thought I saw my chance to escape. But he never stopped – he just threw me roughly into a large cage, and I landed at its far end. I scrambled to make a break for the cage door, but it clanged shut with finality before I could get to it. _Dammit_! I looked around and saw that my captors numbered about ten, and they were all standing around the cage, looking curiously at me . I recognised some of them from before, but there were some new faces too. And all of them were peering at me through the bars of the cage with a strange kind of awe, similar to the reaction of the tribespeople when they'd first seen me. I couldn't understand what they were saying, but there was definite tension in their voices.

"What do you want?" I demanded. They just looked at me and murmured to each other.

"WHAT do you WANT?" I demanded again. "Why have you done this?" I started shouting. My anger was rising. "Where's my Jake? Let me see him!" At the thought of my Jacob lying bloodied and broken and possibly dead, my anger gave way to despair. "Please," I sobbed. "Please, let me see him."

They continued looking at me, but made no move to communicate. One of the men gestured to go, and at this signal four of the men each picked up a handle from each corner of the cage, lifted it, and we began to move.

I wept quietly as I sat in the cage, fearing for my Jake and helpless to do anything about it.

... ~ ooo00O00ooo ~ ...

It was almost morning when we slowed down again. In the misty dawn light, I saw the silhouette of a large fortress looming overhead.

As we got closer, the enormous metal gates slowly opened, and I felt the lump of fear rise in my throat. Whatever happened next, I told myself, I would be strong, I would be brave, and I sure as hell was going to get out of here and back to my Jake.

I surveyed my surroundings, trying to remember as much as I could so that, when the time came, I could make my escape as efficiently as possible. We moved through the gate, past a large courtyard, and into a castle-like building. I could see people watching us as we passed through. Their noisy whispers buzzed in my ears, as I fought back the tears and resolved not to give them the satisfaction of seeing my fear.

The men deposited my cage in the middle of a large, opulent hall. I heard strong, solid footsteps cross the hard stone floor. They stopped not far from the cage. A pair of large brown hands unlocked the cage door, and beckoned me to get out. I sucked up every ounce of courage I could muster in my small body, and crept out of my confinement.

My kidnappers bowed low to the ground, as the man in front of me looked me over. He held out his hand to me, but I couldn't move. I knew immediately who this was, and I was frozen.

"At last," he crooned menacingly, "At long last, I finally have the hybrid."

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><p><strong>AN** - _Please review, and let me know what you think! Should Ch.13 be about Jake, or do we keep going with Nessie for a bit longer...?_


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N **_– _**All Twilight characters belong to Stephanie Meyer. **

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><p>Nessie POV<p>

He looked so different to how I'd imagined. I don't know what I was expecting, but certainly not _this_.

Drago looked to be about in his late twenties, with piercing dark eyes, smooth tanned skin and strong aquiline features. He stood about 6 foot 4 and his body was strong and muscled. He had broad powerful shoulders. And he was_ ridiculously_ handsome. Since when does the bad guy get to be hot?

He was studying me with a strange mix of curiosity, delight and satisfaction. I stood completely still, staring silently at the patterns in the stone floor. He circled around me, examining his new acquisition. I flinched when he touched my hair. My fear was momentarily overtaken by a surge of indignation, and I slapped his hand away.

"Don't touch me," I snapped.

He smirked at me, obviously amused. I wondered whether it was the same kind of amusement that a cat has when it's toying with a mouse. And I was suddenly reminded how very precarious my position was, and how very much my life was right now at the mercy of this man and his whims.

"Ah, so the hybrid speaks," his voice was a deep rumble.

"I have a name, you know," I retorted. The indignation simmering away still obviously had a stronger hold on me than common sense. "I don't appreciate being referred to as 'the hybrid'. It's demeaning."

"I'm sorry," he responded kindly. Excuse me, _what_? I stared at him in disbelief. Did he just _apologise_ to me?

"Please forgive me," Drago continued, "You do have a name, and it was remiss of me to objectify you. I understand your companion calls you Nessie. May I call you Nessie? Or do you prefer," he stumbled over the pronunciation, "Ruh-nez-may..?"

I was taken aback by his politeness. After my treatment at the hands of his henchmen, I was expecting to be beaten, flogged, shouted at, slapped – not asked civilly which form of my name I'd prefer being called.

"Did I not pronounce it correctly?" he asked when I didn't answer.

"Um, no, that's the right pronunciation," I heard my voice answering. "And I'd prefer it if you called me Renesmee." Nessie was too personal, and I didn't like anyone else except Jake calling me that.

Jake, oh god, _my poor Jake_. My thoughts flew to him. I desperately hoped that he was okay. We hadn't been too far from the village, it was getting late, and the tribespeople would have noticed that we hadn't returned. They would have come looking for us, right? And then they would have found him. And they would have taken him back to the village, and patched him all up. I so desperately hoped that was what had happened. Please, let my Jake be okay. But he'd been beaten and stabbed, and was lying on the ground bleeding and unconscious last time I saw him. I felt the hot tears begin to well up in my eyes.

"Then I shall call you Renesmee." Drago continued, paying no attention to my distress.

He continued circling me, examining me from as many angles as possible.

"Amazing," he breathed. "Truly amazing. The spitting image of that which was prophesied in the Scrolls." He ran his finger down my cheek. I recoiled at his touch. If he was offended, he didn't show it.

"Now, Renesmee," he said, "You will be escorted to your quarters where you will rest and bathe, and make yourself presentable. Katerina will attend to your needs." Drago snapped his fingers and an elderly woman came forward. She curtsied low to the ground.

"My lord," she answered in acknowledgement.

"Take the lady Renesmee to her quarters, and see that she is bathed, rested and looked after. I will see her again this evening, at the banquet."

Banquet? What banquet? I wasn't going to any banquet, and least of some banquet thrown by this psycho kidnapper. I needed to see my Jake.

"I need to see Jake…" I began, but Drago silenced me with his hand. There was an arrogance and finality to the gesture that ticked me off.

"He is of no consequence," Drago stated dismissively. "You would do best to forget about him, and everything outside of this castle. Your place is here now." I began to protest, but his eyes flashed cruelly as he added, "And whether you make that place at my side, or in my dungeon, will be entirely up to you."

Drago gestured towards the large metal doors, and I found myself being bundled out of the hall.

... ~ ooo00O00ooo ~ ...

I followed Katerina up a large stone staircase and past a series of rooms on either side of a long corridor. The two soldiers flanking either side of me did a pretty good job of discouraging any notions I might have had of escape.

Now that I was out of earshot and eyeshot of Drago, I started noticing my surroundings. The whole place reminded me of a medieval castle, but lighter and more airy. The furnishings were old and obviously timeworn, but still very beautiful. I probably would have thought it was all actually quite lovely if I wasn't being herded around like some prize pig.

We came to a pair of large ornate doors. They swung open, and I was led past them into a large airy bedroom. One wall of the room was almost taken up completely by a row of windows, their light curtains billowing gently in the breeze. The mist had now lifted, and the morning sunlight was streaming through the large open windows. Katerina gestured to the soldiers to leave, and they heaved the heavy doors closed as they left the room, taking their places, I assumed, at either side outside of the doorway.

The room was – there was no other word for it – _luxurious_. From the sheer size of it, down to the rich furnishings and lavish décor, it was the epitome of opulence. But despite all this, all I wanted was to be back with my Jake. I felt a pull from beyond the mountains, where Drago's men had snatched me from. And I knew _that_ pull – the pull of the imprint – meant that Jake was still alive. _Jake was still alive_ I thought through the empty ache in my chest. And as the realisation of that truth rushed over me, I sighed in relief.

"These are your quarters, Lady Renesmee," said Katerina, drawing me out of my thoughts. "The washroom is to your right," she gestured to a large clawfooted bathtub partially hidden behind a decorative screen, "and a selection of garments has been laid out for you to choose from." She gestured towards a large wardrobe where some clothing had been laid out on a chaise lounge in front of it. On a nearby table was laid a small platter of bread and fruit, along with a jug of what I assumed was juice of some sort.

"How do you know my language?" It occurred to me that, unlike when I had first met Merlin and the tribespeople, I could understand everything that Drago and Katerina were saying.

"I have served Lord Drago all of my life, my lady, and did my parents before me, and theirs before them."

"That still doesn't explain how you know my language," I pointed out. I was starting to get annoyed at how my questions were being answered with only the bare minimum of information - information which didn't even really answer what I wanted to know.

"My ancestors have served Lord Drago from the time of the Sword in the Stone," Katerina answered. "The language of the ancients has been passed down through the generations of my family." Great, I thought, I've been kidnapped by an immortal psycho who enslaves generations of people, and who brainwashes them into thinking that any of that is acceptable.

My mind began to wander to the myriad of contradictions I'd experienced in Drago in the short time I'd been here. On the one hand, he had civilly apologised for 'objectifying' me, and then in practically the same breath he had dismissed my distress and issued a not-so-thinly veiled threat. And now I was being put up in these luxurious quarters, rather than chained in a dungeon as I had originally thought I would be.

"Lord Drago is a very powerful man, my lady," the older woman said, as if sensing my unease. "And powerful men can be kind as they can be cruel." She added matter-of-factly, "You are the prize upon which the Prophecy rests, and _he will have you_."

The statement hung in the air. I thought about responding, but until I had a better grasp of who I was dealing with, I thought it wiser to keep my mouth shut. What I knew for certain now though, was that this woman was no ordinary maidservant. Her family had been in Drago's service for generations, and he had assigned her to oversee my needs. If I was smart, I would watch myself with her.

"But you have travelled far, my lady," the older woman spoke again, changing the subject, "and you must be weary. There is hot water in the tub for you to bathe in. Once you have washed the sweat and grime of your travels away, I would suggest you have a bite to eat," she gestured to the tray of bread and fruit on the table, "and then rest. I will return in the late afternoon to wake and dress you for the banquet."

"I don't want to go to any banque…" I began to protest, but was silenced by a flash of annoyance from the older woman's eyes.

"Lady Renesmee," Katerina said firmly, "You would do well to remember your place. Lord Drago has shown you much kindness, and I would suggest you not forget that." She straightened her dress and repeated in a tone that made it clear she was a woman who would not stand for any nonsense, "I will return in the late afternoon to wake and dress you for the banquet."

And then she added, as if by way of an afterthought, "I assume that I do not have to remind you, my lady, that any attempts to escape would be futile."

And with that, Katerina left the room, as I stared after her at the firmly closed door.


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N **_– _**All Twilight characters belong to Stephanie Meyer. **

* * *

><p><em>Jacob POV<em>

I was fading in and out of consciousness. _Ness, they took Ness. Those fuckers took my Ness_. I was being lifted up and laid on a stretcher. _You've gotta help Nessie_, I tried to tell the owners of the arms lifting me, but there was only the dull gurgle of blood in my throat. I felt warm liquid oozing down my torso. Heavy hands pressed down on my chest, stemming the flow of blood. _Ness, save my Ness_, I tried to say, but the words wouldn't form. I felt my eyes roll back into my head, as the numbing darkness overtook me again…

.

.

.

I was being carried through the forest. Panicked voices. Darkness. More panicked voices. Honiahaka barking orders… bright light assaulting my eyelids … the metallic smell of blood … I tried to open my eyes, but the heaviness was overwhelming. I was shaking. I felt cold, so very col…

.

.

.

_Nessie was standing in a meadow. The sunlight cast a soft glow off her alabaster skin, and golden reflections were dancing off her bronze curls. She held her hands out to me, and smiled as I walked towards her. She was speaking, but I couldn't hear what she was saying. I moved towards her, but failed to close the distance between us. I walked faster, and then broke into a run. But the faster I went, the further she seemed to drift away. She was grabbing at the air, reaching out to me in desperation. I realised she was mouthing the words 'Goodbye, my Jacob', but her movements and the panicked look in her eyes conflicted with the words her mouth was forming. Then the skies darkened and a sinister shadow passed over the meadow. The image of Nessie dissolved into the misty air, and I was left alone in the darkening emptiness... _

.

.

.

I could hear voices speaking.

"He's stirring," I heard someone say. Sounded like Bella. And then a male voice, "Shhh…don't disturb him, love. Carlisle said he needs to rest." Ah, that would be Eddie. I must have fallen asleep at the Cullen house. I should go and wake Nessie. I missed my girl. The dull ache in my chest – the pull of the imprint – was beckoning me to her, to my Ness. But the ache was excruciatingly painful now. Why did it hurt so much? Where was my Ness? My memories started coming back – the mirrors, the portal, the prophecy, the ambush, getting stabbed, Nessie being taken away. _Fuck_. Nessie had been kidnapped. I had to save her. I tried to get up, but the heaviness overwhelmed me and I was engulfed by the darkness again.

.

.

.

* * *

><p><em>Renesmee POV<em>

I walked over to the door and tried to open it. Unsurprisingly, it was locked. I could hear stirring on the other side of the door, and so I supposed that it must be guarded. I wandered over to the windows and peered out. They overlooked a large courtyard - A courtyard with a guard stationed at every corner, three more directly below my windows and another two on the other side of the courtyard with a direct line of sight to me. Ugh, escape was not going to be easy.

_At least Jake was still alive_, I thought. As long as I could feel the pull of the imprint, I knew that he was still part of this world, whatever _this_ world that we now found ourselves in was. I couldn't help musing again, as I had done so often since we'd arrived here, why the Veil had not suppressed the magic of the imprint. The bond remained as strong and pure as ever, connecting my soul to his. Is this what it meant to be soulmates? Was it a bond so strong and pure that even a force invoked by arguably one of the most powerful sorcerers the world had ever known couldn't smother it? I had decided long ago not to question the imprint – My Jake loved me, and that was enough – I didn't care if the magic of the imprint had decided that for him. Love was love. How did the line go? –

_What's in a name?_ _That which we call a rose  
>By any other name would smell as sweet<em>.

Even in this land, where magic had been suppressed, I still felt the imprint bond, connecting me to my love. I smiled to myself, and the warmth radiated out from my heart. It permeated through every fibre of my being, and settled into my soul with a quiet contentment - Just the thought of Jake always made me feel so warm and complete, like a comforting hand on my heart, warm and wonderful. Like him. Like my Jake.

I had to escape this castle somehow, but I needed to be sensible about this. Even if I got out of this room, past the guards, over the walls and then to sweet, sweet freedom – fat lot of good it would do me if I couldn't get over the mountains and back to Jake. The tug I felt in the centre of my chest told me in which direction I had to go, but I didn't know for sure how far away? My captors had marched all night, so I knew we were at the very least a long, long way from the village. Without my half-vampire speed and endurance, I knew I'd never make it.

I looked over at the bath. The warm steam spilling over its edges looked so inviting. I decided that I may as well get myself clean, eat some food, and have a rest. It could have been worse - I could be chained up in a dungeon, with no bath, no food and just a cold stone floor to sleep on. I decided that, even if I was unhappy about the whole situation, sulking about it would be as useful as giving a bicycle to a fish.

I dropped my dirtied clothes on the floor and sunk my tired body down into the hot water, letting the heat envelop me. I closed my eyes and pretended that the warmth was from being cradled in my Jake's strong arms.

* * *

><p><em>Jacob POV<em>

The heaviness in the air around me was suffocating.

I was still drifting in and out of consciousness, alternating between fitful sleep littered with recurring dreams of Nessie in that meadow, and a vague awareness of voices, pain, and recollections of what had happened.

When I could stand again, I was gonna hunt down those fuckers and tear out their throats.

* * *

><p><em>Nessie POV<em>

I don't know when I had fallen asleep.

When I opened my eyes again, I saw that the sun had sunk low in the afternoon sky. Katerina was fussing about at the far end of the room, holding an elaborate looking gown.

"It is time to rise, my lady," she turned to me. "The banquet begins in one hour. Lord Drago is expecting you."

I ignored her and instead burrowed under the soft blankets, covering my head. _Over my dead body_, I thought. No way was I going to some banquet hosted by that, that… that _asshole_. I burrowed deeper under the blankets, and wrapped them around me like a cocoon. Then I rolled over onto my side and bunkered down, physically confirming my refusal to budge.

"Lady Renesmee," I heard Katerina say as she gently tugged the blankets off me. "I know this is all quite overwhelming for you. But please, trust me when I say that it will do no good to defy Lord Drago like this. I beg you, please, my lady."

I opened my mouth to protest, but I don't know whether it was the residual sleepiness or whether I was disarmed by the kindness with which she spoke to me - I gave in.

I didn't resist as Katerina gently unwrapped me from the blankets. I got up and washed the sleep from my eyes and face, and made my way over to the dressing table. Katerina motioned for me to sit down in the chair. I did as she asked, and then she began brushing my hair. Her hands moved deftly through the long strands, fashioning an intricate up-do. As I watched her work, my thoughts wandered to how Aunt Alice and Aunt Rose used to dress me up and do my hair. I was suddenly seized with an overwhelming feeling of homesickness, and tears began to well up in my eyes. I blinked them away. Katerina must have sensed the change in my mood.

"Have I displeased you, my lady?" she asked in a concerned voice.

"No," I replied. "I was just thinking of my family back home." Katerina nodded in acknowledgment, but said nothing. The next few moments passed in silence, as she continued working on my hair.

"Ummm.. so, do you have a family?" I finally asked.

"I have a … I mean, I _had_ a daughter, my lady. She would have been about your age now."

I wanted to know more about Katerina's daughter, especially what had happened to her, but from the quiver in the older woman's voice, I felt that to do so would have been prying too much. I figured that she would tell me in her own time.

Katerina continued fixing my hair, taking great care to make the style just right. As I watched her, I thought how she reminded me of what Grandma Esme might have looked like, had her life been allowed to follow the natural path that it would have taken in a world without monsters and magic.

Katerina and I continued the rest of our hairdressing session in silence. When she was done with my hair, she walked over to the dresser and brought over the long ballgown she had been fussing with earlier. It was a creamy ivory colour and embroidered with golden thread. It had long flowing sleeves, a fitted bodice and a heavy floor-length skirt. Its style reminded me of the kind of dresses that might have been worn by ladies in medieval England. I allowed her to put the dress on me, and it flowed down my body like a liquid ivory waterfall. When I turned to view myself in the looking glass, I almost didn't recognise the reflection staring back at me. The pearls Katerina had woven into my hair set the dress off to perfection, and glowed ethereally against the bronze in my hair. Not bad, I thought to myself. But then I snapped myself out of it. I wasn't here to play dress-ups like some child. I was a prisoner – a very well treated one, but a prisoner nonetheless.

Pleased with her handiwork, Katerina swung the doors open, and ushered me down to the banquet hall. I steeled myself for the evening to come.

* * *

><p><em>Jacob POV<em>

I heard Eddie's voice again. I couldn't tell what he was saying, but I'd recognise those annoying dulcet tones anywhere. Unlike for the last period of fuck-knows-how-long, I was now becoming more lucid and was having longer bouts of being able to remember what had happened. BUT, I decided, I really needed to get a better hallucination-channel provider. I'd rather not have Sparkle Boy feature so prominently in my delusions.

I opened my eyes and squinted at the figures hovering not far away from me. Great, so the hallucination was visual as well as auditory. Through the haze of whatever-it-was-I-was-experiencing, they looked so real, and it occurred to me briefly– maybe it wasn't a hallucination? Maybe he was actually here? I vaguely recalled hearing Bella's voice earlier, but had put that down to a hallucination as well – that is, after I'd worked out that I hadn't fallen asleep and woken up in the Cullen house after all, but that I was actually stuck in some perverse alternate reality where Nessie had been kidnapped, I was powerless to do anything about it, and we were barrelling towards some unavoidable apocalypse. But Eddie and Bella couldn't be here, my dazed mind reasoned. Unless, of course, they'd found that goddamn book, worked out what had happened and decided to swoop in like avenging angels and rescue us. Nice. Too bad no-one warned then about the Veil. If they were here, then they were just about as frail as any human right now. And that was what potentially-imaginary Edward seemed to be arguing with probably-imaginary Merlin about. I saw that I'd also hallucinated Carlisle, Bella and Jasper into this little imaginary party as well. They were all talking in heated tones.

"Lift it," I heard Edward's voice demand.

"I will not," was Merlin's stark refusal.

"He'll die if you don't," Bella's voice pleaded. "Without his wolf healing powers, he will die," she sobbed.

I thought about comforting my friend, telling her that I'd be fine, but then I remembered she was just a hallucination. But imaginary Bella seemed so real, as did imaginary Edward and imaginary everyone else. I didn't get to finish my thought, as the pain in my chest overcame my senses and dragged me back into the anaesthetising darkness once more.

* * *

><p><em>Nessie POV<em>

I had expected to be escorted to the ballroom, but instead I was led to a smaller ante-room. Drago was waiting for me. He was facing away from me, looking out the window, but he turned around as I entered the room. He eyed me up and down appreciatively, appraising my appearance. My insides iced up. I didn't like the way he was looking at me.

"Beautiful," he murmured to himself. Then he spoke more loudly, addressing his comments to me "You look lovely, Renesmee. Very fitting for your debut at tonight's banquet. Our guests will be suitably impressed."

_Our_ guests? I don't think so. _His_ guests maybe. As far as I was concerned, I was a hostage, and my captor was parading me around like some prize pig and putting me on display for _his_ cronies to gawk at. He walked over to me and touched his hand to my cheek.

"Beautiful," he murmured again. I slapped his hand away.

"Don't do that." I snapped.

"Ah," he smirked at me. "I see under all that finery you are still the same feisty creature who graced my hall this morning."

"You have no right to touch me. I may be your hostage, but that doesn't give you any rights over me," I fumed at him.

"Why do you fight me?" he sighed. "The Scrolls of Truth foretold of your arrival and of your role in the Great War. As ruler of this realm, you are my entitlement, and I claim you as mine. I will win this war, and possessing you will, once and for all, cement the legitimacy of my rule. As I said this morning, your place is here now. You will not be permitted to leave, but nor are you a prisoner."

I looked away from him, deciding that I wasn't going to dignify _that_ with a reaction. I was not his entitlement, not his possession, and most of all, not _his_ at all. And nor would I ever be.

"Are you not happy with the quarters I have provided for you?" he asked.

"A gilded cage is still a cage," I snapped. "And that makes me still a prisoner."

"Semantics," he declared dismissively. The displeasure was evident in his voice. "And mark my words, Renesmee. You will behave. I may need to have you in my possession to win the war and give legitimacy to my rule, but the prophecy is silent on whether 'possessing' the hybrid delineates between your being dead or alive." His eyes flashed menacingly at me as he added "Don't make me test it."

We stared each other down, neither willing to give in. I was about to turn on my heel and walk out of the room, when the unthinkable happened.

There was a sudden ripple through the air, and all at once I was so much more aware of the scents around us. My surroundings fell into focus with a clarity I hadn't experienced since we had arrived in this realm. It wasn't only me who noticed. I could tell that Drago felt it too. He looked at me, and I saw the realisation dawn in his eyes of what had just happened.

And the significance of it.

* * *

><p><em>Jacob POV<em>

Would this freakin' hallucination never end?

"Old friend," Doc Vamp was speaking to Merlin, "I beesech you. It would be suicide for us to try and rescue Renesmee without our powers. And Jacob is family. Without his wolf healing powers, he will surely die. If our situations were reversed, would you not do all within your power to save those you love?"

I was still fading in and out of consciousness, but I have to say, this was one of the clearest hallucinations my delirious mind had managed to conjure so far. I watched Merlin as he stood still in silent contemplation. Finally he spoke.

"It is too dangerous," he said. "There is more at stake here than you realise. It is not as if only _part_ of the Veil can be lifted. It is an all or nothing deal. If I do as you ask, all the supernatural beings in this world will have their powers returned to them. Do you understand? _Everyone_."

"And there are more of _us_ than there are of _him_," Carlisle countered. "You have studied the scrolls. You know this is inevitable. Is it not better that this happen now? We are here, and we are strong – or at least we _will_ be again."

Merlin looked unconvinced.

"Just do it," Eddie hissed.

Merlin paused, looking torn. He closed his eyes, and took a deep breath.

"Very well," the ancient vampire sighed. "You have been warned. Step back, my friends."

And with that, Merlin drew his hands towards the heavens. He uttered an ancient incantation, and as he spoke, the air moved. His body began to glow. I watched as the luminosity converged on his hands, and a large ball of light began to form between his upheld palms. Merlin threw his hands apart, and the ball of light exploded into a thousand smaller ones that began to dance around him. They spun around and around him, dancing faster and faster until he was cocooned in a blazing sheath of golden light. And then he uttered the final words of the spell, and the lights scattered to the four winds, sending a jolt through the space around us.

There was another ripple through the air, as the wave dispersed outwards from the epicentre that was the ancient vampire.

"It is done," Merlin said grimly. "The Veil is lifted."

* * *

><p><strong>AN** – _There was a lot of back and forth between Nessie's and Jake's POVs in this chapter. I hope it wasn't too disjointed - I was trying to show the events as they were taking place at the same time for each of them. I'd really appreciate any comments on whether it worked (or didn't!). Thanks again for reading!_


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N **_– _**All Twilight characters belong to Stephanie Meyer. **

* * *

><p><em>Jacob POV<em>

What the _fuck_ was that god-awful smell?

Ugh, it smelt like vamp. My eyes sprung open. Ahhr shit, not _like_ vamp – it _was_ vamp. Instinct kicked in, and I tried to scramble to my feet. But my limbs felt like lead, and my brain was dazed and hazy. I got half way up, but collapsed back onto the bed with a growl of annoyance.

"The dog's awa-ake," I heard Blondie call out from her seat as far away as possible from me in the far corner of the tent. Bella and Edward blurred into view, followed by Carlisle and the rest of the Cullen clan. Merlin shuffled in after them. I looked at them, then around me, and for the first time in god-knows-how-long, everything had a clarity to it that I hadn't experienced in what felt like weeks. And what were the Cullens doing here anyway? Was I still hallucinating? What the fuck was going on?

"Wha…" I managed to get out, before Bella began answering my question without my needing to finish it.

"Jake," she said, sitting down on the bed, hugging me as I sat up. The cold touch of her hand still sent annoying shivers down my spine. She may have been my best friend, but I'd still never get used to the coldness that was now a part of her. Hold on right there. Bella felt cold? She felt _cold_ to the touch _here_? My thoughts were interrupted as my friend continued to speak.

"When we couldn't find you and Nessie," she said, "Jasper and Emmett put two and two together - we found the book, the mirrors, and well – here we are. We got here about two nights ago - just as the hunters were bringing you back to the village. You had us all quite worried."

"Nessie…" I stammered. Bella's eyes welled up with tears at the mention of her daughter's name. Edward moved in closer to Bella and put a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"I caught a glimpse of her," the little pixie trilled, bouncing into view. "She's okay. Just as our powers came back and before the blind spot she causes could take hold, I saw her. She's being held captive in a castle, but is being treated well – for now."

"And one more thing- " it was Jasper who spoke this time, "In case you didn't notice, Merlin lifted the veil."

That would explain the clarity of my surroundings, and why Bella felt cold to the touch. The haziness was gone, and everything was now in focus. Not just sightwise, but smell-wise too. Erk, I had forgotten how bad the bloodsu-…er, vamps smelt. Ahrr, fuck. If Merlin had lifted the Veil, then Eddie boy could probably hear my thoughts. I saw a corner of his mouth twitch upwards. Yeah, he heard me. And then he sniggered when he saw I'd seen his reaction and knew he knew what I'd been thinking. I'd forgotten how annoying this could be.

"It's all right Jacob," he smirked. "You stink again too."

"Stop it, both of you," Bella scolded. "Now Jacob," she continued, directing her attention once again to me, "Your accelerated healing has already kicked in. Carlisle says that you should be up and about in the next day or so, and good as new fairly soon after."

The doc was standing quietly to the side, with Momma Vamp next to him. He nodded, by way of confirming Bella's report.

My mind was still a bit fuzzy, I guessed it was because I was still recovering from my injuries, but there was one clear thought in my mind – and that was of my Ness. "What are we going to do about rescuing Nessie? Alice – you saw her being held in a castle – did you get anything else? Any landmarks? Any clues? Who took her?"

"Slow down, son," Edward said. "Merlin is fairly certain that Renesmee is being held by Drago- "

I cut him off as my anger flashed. What the fuck were they still doing here if they knew where she was? Why weren't they out there saving her?

"So what are you all waiting for then?" I growled. "Why aren't you out there storming that goddamn castle right now and rescuing her? What if he's hurt her? Or worse, what if he's…" My rage was almost blinding. And now that I knew where to direct it, I was gonna hunt those fuckers down and rip out their throats like I'd promised myself I would do. The familiar tremors began to ripple through my body, and I saw Bella flinch and the others take a step back. Rosalie hissed and Emmett pushed her behind him. Jasper stood protectively in front of Alice, and everyone except Bella took another step back.

"Jacob, NO." Bella's voice rang through my rage. It snapped me back, and at the same time I felt a wave of calm rush over me. Walking Prozac must be on the case again. Probably just as well, since bursting into a horse-sized wolf in this tent wouldn't do anyone any good, and would probably just break a lot of furniture and piss off the vamps. Edward smirked at me again.

I took a deep breath and continued, "All I'm saying, _Edward_, is that if we know where Nessie is, then why aren't we doing anything about it? Why aren't _you_ doing anything about it? Don't you care that she's at the mercy of this, this… _fuck_, I don't even know _what_ to call him."

_It doesn't matter what you call him_, the wolf growled, _he's a dead man_. I agreed with the wolf, but pushed it to the side for now. Getting myself more riled up wasn't going to do anyone any good at this point.

"Do NOT presume to lecture me, _Jacob_, about the welfare of my child," Edward snarled at me. He was barely containing the condescension in his voice. It looked like his patience had finally snapped. "I love her no less than you do, and I will do everything in my power to bring her back to safety. But we must be sensible about how we go about it," and then he looked me squarely in the eyes as he very clearly enunciated, "or we will get ourselves – _and her_ - killed. Do. You. Understand?"

I felt like I'd been verbally sucker punched. The wolf inside me bristled. The wolf hated to admit it as much as I did, but Eddie was right.

"Yeah, I get it, okay," I grumbled.

Merlin, who had remained silent until now, finally spoke.

"Jacob, the Veil has been lifted. We all have our powers back, but so does Drago. He is a very powerful sorcerer and taking him head-on may not be the wisest of strategies. Your seer has ascertained that Renesmee is being treated well for the time being, and so that gives us some time to plan the best way to take things forward."

Merlin was right. They were all right. And I felt like a schmuck. Nessie was being treated well at the moment, and if she at least had her half-vampire powers back, she stood a fighting chance at protecting herself. I took a deep breath, and felt the imprint pull at me from across the mountains. That must be the direction in which my Nessie was. I concentrated my thoughts through the imprint bond and felt her through the connection. I sensed no physical discomfort from her. She was upset, but not overly so – some worrying on her part was to be expected, I supposed, given the situation. She was okay, relatively speaking. And so I felt myself relax a bit.

"Now Jacob," Bella smiled at me, pulling me out of my thoughts, "You hurry up and get healed, so we can go and rescue my daughter, okay?"

"Okay," I mumbled. I still felt a bit chagrined from being taken down a peg or two by Eddie. At least Nessie was okay, and so I could deal with it. The Cullens and Merlin started leaving the tent, and I lay myself back down to get some rest so that the accelerated healing could do its job. Jasper stopped a few feet away from the door and turned around to me.

"I have some ideas," he said thoughtfully. "We'll need to do some recon first, but I think I'm well onto a few battle strategies. I'd like to run through them with you tomorrow morning, if you don't mind."

"Yeah, that sounds good. Let's -" but I didn't get to finish what I was saying. I heard the sound of voices shouting outside, and looked up to see that Emmett had poked his head in through the folds of the tent's doorway.

"Hey man," he said to me, looking both excited and anxious. "I think you'd better come and see this."

I got up slowly from the bed. I was still having trouble standing, so Jasper and Emmett helped me as I hobbled slowly over to the doorway.

I stepped out of the tent and nearly keeled over in disbelief. Sitting in the clearing just outside the tent were eight panicked-looking horse-sized wolves.


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N **_– _**All Twilight characters belong to Stephanie Meyer. **

* * *

><p><em>Jacob POV<em>

I couldn't decide whether this was cool or creepy. It was like being back home in La Push, but not.

They looked so much like my Pack – there was a large black wolf, two light grey wolves and another dark mottled grey, a sandy-coloured wolf, and three more wolves of varying shades of brown ranging from chocolate to light coffee.

My thoughts strayed back to an earlier, unfinished conversation with Nessie –

" … _They look so much like your Pack brothers back home. You guys must be related. And didn't you say that you thought the language here was very similar to Quileute? What if you all have the same ancestors? And if Merlin hadn't closed off the path between the two worlds, maybe you might all be one people?_"

The tribespeople were buzzing with excitement. I picked up snippets of conversation from within the crowd –

"...the legends are true!"

"Is this part of the prophecy?"

"The cold ones have caused this..."

"What the hell just happened?"

But it wasn't just the tribespeople. I could feel the excitement, mixed with confusion, coming off the wolves. Judging by the shredded clothing scattered all around and the tension that still hung in the air, I guessed that they must have phased within the last few minutes. For first-time phasers, they were –relatively speaking – handling it all pretty well. I remembered when Collin and Brady first phased, they'd freaked out and had run halfway to Canada before Sam, Jared and Seth and I had managed to race them down and calm them enough that they were willing to believe the world wasn't ending. But _these_ wolves – they were just sitting there. Their bewilderment and disorientation were obvious, but they seemed relatively calm and in control. And unlike Collin and Brady, they _were_ potentially facing the end of the world. I snorted at the irony of it all.

As I stepped out of the tent, all eight wolves turned in unison to look at me. It was as if I was some kind of beacon that had drawn their attention. Their eyes searched mine for an answer that I wasn't sure that I had. The large black one whined softly as his tongue lolled out in a wolfish grin. When he saw I had noticed, his tail began moving up and down, thumping heavily against the ground. I smiled back at him, realising it was Honiahaka.

And then I heard – no, that wasn't it – I _felt_ the word _**Alpha**_ hum powerfully in my ears, as a mental connection began to weave itself between me and the wolves in front of me. I saw Edward's eyes widen, and I knew he had seen in his mind's eye what had just happened.

"Astounding," Carlisle was murmuring in wonder as he looked at the newly phased wolves. Bella and Esme looked stunned. Blondie was pretending she didn't care but was sneaking glances anyway, and the little pixie was, for once, speechless. Even Jasper seemed taken aback. Edward was staring at the whole scene with a mix of amazement and scepticism, and Emmett – well, he was just being Emmett.

"Hey dude," he nudged me. "Looks like the locals phased." I gave him a look that said _Thanks man, where would we be without your amazing powers of perception?_

"Whaa-at?" he chided. I smirked at him and then directed my attention back to the scene in front of us.

The only one who didn't seem the least bit surprised was Merlin.

"I thought this might happen," he muttered.

"You what?" My eyes narrowed as I contemplated him.

"I had suspected this for awhile. Although, for a time I had thought I was over thinking it, as I did not see shadows of wolves superimposed on these young men, the way I see the giant red wolf when I look at you, Jacob. The tribespeople have long had legends about skinwalkers – young men who transform to wolves to protect their people. They also have legends about the cold ones, although those stories have changed and adjusted over the generations. That is not unexpected though, given the tribe's views have changed as I have lived among, and protected them, for almost two thousand years now."

"Two thousand years! But you only left our world a few centuries ago!" Carlisle interjected. "That doesn't make sense, unless…." He trailed off as his tone became contemplative.

"Unless time works differently here," Merlin finished for him. "Of that, my friend, you can be certain." Then he turned to Bella and Edward. "How long do you think it was that Renesmee and Jacob were missing before you followed them here?"

"Well, it would have been about a day and a half," Bella answered, looking as if she wasn't entirely sure about where this conversation was going.

"To you - in your world - it was a day and a half. However, here in this realm, over a week had passed. Time moves faster in this world – by around a factor of six or seven times compared to your own. And in answer to the question that remains, as yet, unspoken – Yes, Jacob and this tribe are of the same blood, descended from the same ancestors – although, it is not that straightforward." Merlin stopped for a moment to let it all sink in, and then he continued.

"As I have told you previously, your world and this one are two halves of the same whole – though they are separated, they are still one and the same. And what happens in one world is reflected into the other. When the two worlds separated, one half lifted into this dimension to form this realm, and the other half remained as it was, without change."

As I listened to him, it occurred to me that these two worlds were so much like we shifters are. The wolf and human halves of us each forming part of the same being – separated, yet still one and the same - and what happens to one affects the other. And now all of our worlds were colliding.

I turned to walk towards the wolves so I could get a better look, and as I got closer I felt an irresistible urge to phase.

_Alpha_…

The humming got louder in my head. I felt the familiar tremors rock my body. The wolf was fighting to break free. It wanted to join its packmates.

_Alpha…_

I felt my bones crack, and the snapping sound of muscles and sinew as they lengthened and rearranged themselves. My skin prickled as the fur broke through it.

_Alpha…_

I was on all fours. And I could hear the wolves' thoughts in my head. It was so weird. I had a basic understanding of their language, but nowhere near enough to be able to understand them as clearly as I could right now. Then I realised that, mixed with the words I was hearing were feelings, emotions, moods, reactions, impressions, more feelings, and these were mixing with the words, giving me a clearer perception of what was being said –or more to the point, _felt_. I realised that this was the same as what went on back home, but I hadn't noticed it before because there hadn't been a language barrier.

The wolves may have looked calm on the outside, but inside their heads it was a mess. The voices were all confused. There was so much confusion. Chaos. Disorientation. Confusion. Turmoil. Confusion.

_STOP_, I roared through the mayhem, allowing my inner voice to resonate with the Alpha timbre._ Will everyone just calm the fuck down_. And then, because I felt bad, I added a bit sheepishly- _uh_, _please_.

And just like that, it went quiet.

The wolves were all still looking at me, their eyes searching for answers.

_I don't know why this has happened_, I began, _but Merlin seems to think that we're all connected by our bloodlines. If we are descended from the same people, then I guess we would have similar, if not the same, legends. The only explanation I can give you at this point, is that the legends are true. __I imagine you are all very confused now. Hell, I'm confused too, _I told them._ I don't know where to from here, but we'll work through it together, okay? _

Their response floored me. It rang clear and true, as they answered in unison-

_You are Alpha. We will follow you. Command us._


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N **_– _**All Twilight characters belong to Stephanie Meyer. **

**Recap**: _There was a sudden ripple through the air, and all at once I was so much more aware of the scents around us. My surroundings fell into focus with a clarity I hadn't experienced since we had arrived in this realm. It wasn't only me who noticed. I could tell that Drago felt it too. He looked at me, and I saw the realisation dawn in his eyes of what had just happened._

_And the significance of it._

* * *

><p><em>Renesmee POV<em>

Drago barked out an order, and two guards burst through the door and grabbed me. They wrenched my arms behind me, but I broke free with ease, sending them flying into the wall. Quick as a flash, Drago was next to me. Unlike the guards, he _did_ have superhuman strength and though I struggled, I wasn't able to break free from his vice-like grip.

"Katerina," he bellowed, and the older woman came bustling through the door. "Cancel the banquet. I will take Lady Renesmee back to her _quarters_," his voice hardened on the last word as he tightened his grip in response to my squirming, "where she will remain - _and you will watch her_ - until I say otherwise." And with that, he marched me back up the stairs, not once loosening his grip.

"You know I'll just jump the walls now, right?" I taunted as I struggled against his hold. "I have my half-vampire strength and speed back. Those walls won't hold me. You may as well just let me go."

"I don't think so," he drawled icily. "I have not come so far only to have you slip from my grasp now." He tightened his grip even more. I felt a cloth being held over my nose and mouth, and a strange smell invaded my senses and made my head spin. My strength gave way and I slipped into darkness.

.

.

.

_I was in a sunny meadow, and Jake was walking towards me. I held my hands out to him, beckoning him closer. But the distance between us wasn't lessening at all. I tried to call out to him to come closer, but the words that fell from my lips weren't what my mind was saying. Every time I opened my mouth, all that came out was 'Goodbye, my Jacob'. I tried to stop it, to tell him no, that's not what I meant to say, but I couldn't. I felt the heartache in my chest as the imprint pulled me towards Jake, while I fought against the unknown something else that held me back. I grabbed at the air, trying to get closer to my Jake, but to no avail. The skies darkened and I was dragged back again into the numbing darkness…_

_._

_._

_._

When I came to, I was lying on the bed in my roo… no, _not_ my room – this would _never_ be my room. It was the room that Drago had assigned to me. Katerina was sitting on quietly in one of the chairs next to the bed. She looked up when she saw I was awake.

"How are you feeling, my lady?" she asked, concern evident in her voice. I was still groggy, but managed to nod lightly to indicate I was okay.

"You have been sedated," she explained, and then added disapprovingly "I did not think that Lord Drago would feel it necessary to use such a heavy-handed tranquiliser."

No wonder I felt groggy. That asshole had drugged me. I wondered how long I had been out for.

"How long have I been asleep?" I asked.

"All of last night, and most of today, my lady."

I saw that the sun was low in the sky again. I sighed. Another day wasted, I thought to myself. I did a quick scan of the room. There were now bars on the windows, and the door had been reinforced with an additional inner door of metal bars. _So much for not being treated like a prisoner_, I scowled to myself. I got up and looked through the window bars into the courtyard. The guard contingent had been doubled and there were things that looked like massive guard dogs now patrolling with the soldiers. Huh, looks like Drago really was worried.

I thought back to how I had taunted him about how I was going to escape now that I had my powers back. In hindsight, that was a stupid thing to do. I guess I should thank my lucky stars that he'd put me back in this room and put bars on the doors and windows, instead of chaining me up in the dungeon just to be on the safe side.

My thoughts strayed back to the dream I had just woken from. I couldn't shake the unease I felt. It had seemed so real. I surmised it must have been because it happened in one of those close-to-waking moments. At least I hoped that was what it was. The thought of it still made me shudder. The pang of heartache I'd felt in the dream still remained, lingering still.

I was snapped out of my thoughts by the sound of the doors swinging open. Just as I looked up, Drago swept into the room and closed the doors behind him as swiftly as he had opened them.

"Ah-ah-ah, Renesmee," he tutted at me. "Don't even think about slipping out through those doors. They are watched every second of every day, as you are." I glared at him, hoping that by sheer force of will alone I might be able to burn a hole through his stupid head. No such luck. He looked at me, obviously amused by my annoyance.

"So, what do you think of the new enhancements I had added to your room?" He made a sweeping gesture at the bars on the windows and doors.

"You're much too generous," I answered sarcastically. "You needn't have gone to the trouble." I braced myself for the verbal slap that I knew was coming. Instead, all I heard was Drago's booming laugh.

"Ah, Renesmee. Even when you are angry, your beauty still dazzles," he smirked. "And you are spirited as always," he said, pulling me towards him. I resisted, but he wrenched me closer with one hand, and with the other held me flush against his body. He ghosted his lips along my jaw, "But spirits can be broken," he hummed against my skin. "I have no desire to break you, Renesmee, but try my patience and you will leave me no choice."

I twisted myself out of his hold and took a step back. What I really wanted to do was run away to the far side of the room, but I wasn't going to give him the satisfaction. Instead, I took another half step back, and glared at him defiantly.

"Go to hell," I hissed.

"Where do you think I came from?" he smirked, amusement playing at the corners of his mouth. I was reminded again of a cat toying with a mouse, and I felt a cold shudder run down my spine. Then as if it was a game that had suddenly gotten old, he abruptly changed the subject.

"Tell me about imprinting," he said.

"What?"

"Imprinting. I wish to know of this mysterious Imprint magic that even Merlin's so-called Veil was unable to break."

Why was he interested in imprinting? The alarm bells were going off big time, but I couldn't put my finger on why.

"Tell me," Drago repeated, "about Imprint magic." He stared into my eyes, as if trying to hypnotise me into answering him. I looked away, unwilling to meet his unwavering gaze.

"TELL ME," he demanded again, taking a step towards me.

"No," I bit back angrily. I would not share with him knowledge about something so sacred and pure as the imprint.

He took a step towards me, and I backed away on instinct. To my surprise, Katerina stepped in front of Drago. I was about to protest that I could fight my own battles, but she shot me a look that made me stop dead.

"My lord," she began, directing her attention to Drago, "perhaps lady Renesmee is still feeling the effects of the sedative and her head is not clear. Much has happened in the last day, and perhaps it would be a better use of your time for this conversation to be resumed later."

Drago softened when he took in the older woman's words. "Yes, Katerina, maybe you are right," he said, patting her shoulder fondly. He turned to leave the room, but stopped abruptly. He turned back to me, and ran a finger down one side of my cheek. I turned my face away, recoiling at his touch. His handsome features belied a cruel and cold countenance, as he delivered his parting shot.

"Remember, Renesmee – Your place is here now. Spend it in my dungeon, or at my side - the choice is yours." Then Drago swept out of the room as swiftly as he had entered, the sound of the closing doors adding a finality to his statement.

His last words hung in the air, as I stared after him. I turned to Katerina, intending to thank her for stepping in, but I wasn't prepared for what happened next.

"Katerina, I …" I began to say, but the pent-up emotion surged forth and the hot tears that had been stinging the edges of my eyes suddenly overflowed. I couldn't stop them, and I wept openly as the older woman cradled me close to her chest.

"Shhhh, child," she crooned, rocking me softly back and forth. "You have been through much, and it is a credit to you to have held it together for this long."

I cried and cried, allowing myself the relief the tears brought me. As I eventually calmed down, it occurred to me how much Katerina had changed since that first time I'd met her. She looked tired and somehow more timeworn now, and not the stern matron who had issued me with that harsh warning about the futility of escape.

"Why are you being so nice to me?" I asked her.

"Lord Drago has instructed me to see to your needs, my lady," she answered matter-of-factly. But I heard the quiver in her voice which betrayed there being more to it than just that.

As far as I could tell, Katerina had been in servitude to Drago all her life, as generations of her family had been before her. I knew he was powerful, but somewhere in the back of my mind I felt the mystery went deeper. And then it occurred to me. Katerina was afraid of him. Deeply afraid of him. And at great personal risk she had stepped in to protect me.

"Why did you step in just now?" I questioned. Katerina paused. I thought she wasn't going to answer, but then finally she spoke.

"You are the cornerstone of the prophecy, my lady, and Lord Drago is a powerful man. There is much to fear in being that which is coveted by one so powerful. Lord Drago's magic draws its source from one which is ancient and primeval. He is the Great Dragon."

"Yes," I responded, "I know that he's known by that name, but what does that have to do with anything?"

"You do not understand," Katerina's voice was suddenly lowered to a quiet whisper as she imparted the knowledge that would haunt me for many days to come.

"He is _the_ Great Dragon – A being of unimaginable magic and power, forged in the fires of Hell and old as time itself. The Great Dragon of the Apocalypse, the ancient serpent of myth and legend. And he wants you."


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N **_– __Hi everyone – Sorry this chapter took so long to post. And yeah, yet again I blame the whirlwind that is 'real life' … BTW – I've just been dragged kicking and screaming into the 21__st__ century and got myself a Twitter account so that I can tweet updates - Come join me at _www. twitter. com / blackimprint _(with no spaces) or find me _(at)blackimprint _if you're interested!_

**All Twilight characters belong to Stephanie Meyer. **

* * *

><p><strong>Recap<strong>:

The wolves were all still looking at me, their eyes searching for answers.

_I don't know why this has happened_, I began, _but Merlin seems to think that we're all connected by our bloodlines. If we are descended from the same people, then I guess we would have similar, if not the same, legends. The only explanation I can give you at this point is that the legends are true._ _I imagine you are all very confused now. Hell, I'm confused too, _I told them._ I don't know where to from here, but we'll work through it together, okay? _

Their response floored me. It rang clear and true, as they answered in unison.

_You are Alpha. We will follow you. Command us._

* * *

><p><em>Jacob POV<em>

The Doc had thought it would take a few days, but it turns out that when I phased it healed my body completely. So physically, I was now good as new. My mental state though, was a different story. I was still fumbling my way through the mind-fuck otherwise known as the last few days.

Even last night was still a blur. Once I'd woken up, everything had happened so fast, my head was still catching up. I mentally ticked off the WTF boxes– ok, so the Cullens were here – Everyone had gotten their powers back – Wolves had phased - Wolves had managed to _un_phase – Nessie was still missing... Aaghrr, Nessie. My Nessie. The empty ache in my chest tugged me in the direction of the mountains, and I had to fight with every fibre of my being not to run towards it right then and there and rescue her. But Eddie boy was right. We had to do this properly, or we were going to get ourselves - _and her_ - killed. I felt my inner wolf's frustration, layered with its grudging acceptance, of the situation facing us.

And then there was that freaky-ass recurring dream that I kept having – the one of Nessie in the meadow. I'd thought it was just delirium from the fever, but I dreamt again this morning. It was just before I woke, and it felt more real than ever. I still felt tense and uneasy from it. I shook my head, trying to get rid of the feeling.

"Jacob," someone was calling my name. I looked up in the direction of the voice. It was Jasper. "Jacob," he repeated, "so are we in agreement?"

"Stop daydreaming, mutt," Blondie grumbled, poking me roughly with her foot.

"Sure, sure," I responded to Jasper while pointedly ignoring Undead Barbie. "Sounds good to me."

I had no fucking idea what I'd just agreed to, but from what I could read of the map Jasper had scratched into the dirt, it looked reasonable. Emmett and I may have had lots of fun teasing him when we were bored, but there was no denying that the Major was a brilliant military strategist. If it was a battle plan he had come up with, it was sure to be a good one.

"All right then everyone," Jasper got up from where we were crouched on the ground, brushing the dust off his pants. He straightened up and directed his voice to the rest of the Cullens. "Here's what we're going to do."

Everyone gathered in closer to listen. I thought it was funny how they did that. With their vamp hearing, it wasn't as if they couldn't hear him from where they had been standing. I guess they had just gotten used to mimicking human behaviour over the years. I realised Edward was watching me with an amused look on his face. I directed my thoughts at him. _Yeah, that's right, I just called you vamps a bunch of copycats. Now move along, Glitter Boy - _I glared at him - _Nothing to see here._ He snorted and returned his attention to Jasper, who had just begun to lay out the plan.

"Our strategy involves a three-pronged approach," he began. "Firstly – Recon. For the next week, Drago's castle will be under surveillance around the clock. This is to enable us to work out who and what we're dealing with. We will do two rounds of recon – day and night – rotating in shifts of two per run, with the exception of Alice. Alice will remain here, so that she can monitor what is happening and alert us if the two on patrol run into any problems. Edward will run as many shifts as possible – his powers will give us the advantage in terms of being able to discover more information via the enemy's thoughts. Once we have a clearer idea of their strengths and weaknesses, this will be the basis of our plan of attack. Designing this plan will also involve making a series of decisions, so that Alice can use her powers to ascertain the success, or otherwise, of each course of action."

Jasper paused to see if anyone had any questions, before continuing.

"The second prong of the strategy involves maximising the advantage we have with the wolves being on our side. Whoever is not on a recon shift will work with Jacob on training them on battle formations and fighting strategies. Although they are only newly phased, they are remarkably disciplined. I do not think it will take long to get them ship shape and ready to fight. All going well, we should be ready to move within the week."

"Now thirdly," Jasper continued, "if we are running recon on Drago, we can expect that he is doing the same to us. I've set up a perimeter around the village – " he drew a circle in the dirt around the cluster of stones to the North of the map, "so we will run protection patrols in pairs, comprising one wolf and one of us, in eight-hour shifts. Now, any questions?"

"Yes," Merlin spoke up, "More a suggestion than a question, actually. Rather than running protection patrols, perhaps I could use my powers to raise a shield, or something similar, that would correspond to the perimeter you have indicated."

"You can do that?" Emmett stared open-mouthed.

"Of course," Merlin responded. "My vampiric ability is the power to control the elements and shape the world around me. Erecting a 'force field' is really just a matter of manipulating atoms in the air to form a solid from vapour."

"In other words," Emmett pointed out, "You can materialise shit out of thin air. Dude, that's awesome!"

"Well, yes, I suppose you could describe it that way," Merlin smiled.

"A forcefield," Carlisle mused. "That, my friend, is an excellent suggestion!" Everyone was in furious agreement with the Doc's assessment.

"It seems you are our secret weapon after all," Jasper smiled his lopsided grin at the ancient vampire. "If the legends they tell of you in our world are true, your powers could be what tip the scales in our favour. Carlisle and I have some ideas on how that might be done – we'd like to talk them through with you after this meeting, if you are agreeable."

"Yes, of course," Merlin nodded, and then Jasper continued -

"Merlin, you also have something else that is of unparalleled value in battle… You have intimate knowledge of the enemy. You have already shared with us some information about Drago and the prophecy, but over the next day or so, Carlisle will work with you to gather up all that you know – the tiniest detail could make a difference." Jasper looked over at his father, and the Doc nodded in acknowledgement and agreement.

"All right then," Jasper wound up the meeting. "Let's get this show on the road."

As we dispersed into our designated groups, I decided how thankful I was that Jasper and Merlin were fighting on our side, and not on the other. Jasper had earned every word of the plan he'd just shared with us, through blood and sweat and pain. His strategic abilities were honed through having survived - and won – countless battles spanning almost a century of wars. The scars on his body were testament to that fact. I always found the scarring on his skin – imperceptible to the human eye, but painfully discernible to supernatural creatures like us – unsettling. It was a constant reminder of how dangerous he truly was. Walking Prozac may have been my buddy, but the rumble of the vicious killing machine that was innate to him always prowled quietly beneath the surface.

Edward and Emmett ran the first patrol, while I began getting my new pack acclimatised to their powers so that we could begin their training in earnest. As Jasper rightly observed, the new wolves were extraordinarily disciplined. They also weren't as distrustful of vampires as the La Push wolves were, and so readily accepted the Cullens into their village. I presumed a large part of that would have been because Merlin had lived among them for so long, and also the history they had shared going back so many generations. That said, the natural suspicion of vampires that was innate to our genetic makeup always simmered beneath the surface, and I would sometimes catch a stray glimpse of wariness in the wolves' minds.

I waited for Jasper to finish his counsel with Carlisle and Merlin, and then he and I gathered the wolves together and began running them through the initial battle formations.

... ~ ooo00O00ooo ~ ...

We were onto our third day of training, and the wolves' progress was outstanding. While the mental connection that we all shared helped in bringing everything together, the fact that they were naturals in battle was indisputable.

Since that night, another eleven wolves had phased, so all up I now had a pack of 19, not including myself. Honiahaka had taken his natural place as my Beta, and everything fell into place so easily I was starting to get paranoid that something was gonna go wrong. We had a couple of attempted incursions by Drago's men, but the shield that Merlin had erected continued to hold and so all remained okay on that front. We had also managed to gather a reasonable amount of intel as well, and were able to continually refine our plan of attack.

Through it all though, my thoughts remained focussed on the girl whose face, voice, and touch I longed for. My Nessie. I missed her so much. It had been almost a week since those fuckers had ambushed us and taken her, and the empty ache in my chest was almost unbearable. I still felt the pull of the imprint in the direction of the mountains, where I knew she was, but for some reason it felt like the reciprocity of the pull was weaker somehow – like there was something not quite right with the anchor that held me to her. Old Quil had once explained to me that the magic of the imprint works both ways – soulmates are two halves of the same whole, and so the connection is reciprocal. When the steel cables that hold a wolf's soul to his imprint pulled him towards her, he would feel a mutual pull in response – like the tension in a cable when it's tugged against its anchor. But it felt different today, and I couldn't put my finger on it. It was almost like the foothold wasn't quite right. I tried not to think about it. Maybe it was because I missed her so much. The fact that that weird-ass dream of Nessie in the meadow kept rearing its ugly head didn't help much either. Truth be told, it was really starting to freak me out.

My concentration got worse as the day wore on. Momma Vamp and Blondie made me take a break when they realised I was having trouble focussing on the training.

"You're going to distract the other dogs through that stupid mental connection you all have," Blondie had scowled, "So go get your shit together so you don't screw up all our efforts."

"Fuck off Blondie" I growled at her. I had tried to explain to her that as Alpha, I could close down the link and allow my pack to see only what I chose to let them of my thoughts, but as usual she never listened anyway. At Esme's insistence though – I always had soft spot for Momma Vamp - I acknowledged that maybe I could do with a break, and so agreed to rest for an hour.

Sitting alone now in the tent I had shared with my Nessie, I felt the emptiness consume me. I could feel my Ness slipping away, and I didn't know why. Even when the Veil had suppressed all the magic here, it hadn't felt like this. But this was the first time that I had been apart from Nessie, and for so long. Was this why it was happening? But Paul had been away from Rachel for weeks at a time, having to take construction work wherever he could find it. And Claire lived on the Makah reservation, which was a fairly decent distance from where Quil lived. And neither of them had ever mentioned feeling like this when away from their imprints for extended periods. Maybe, I wondered, was something wrong with me?

I was so frustrated. Maybe Merlin would know what the fuck was going on with all this. I decided I would ask him when he and Carlisle next surfaced from their de-briefing session. I got that my paranoia rated way down the significance scale when weighed against needing to save the world, but it was driving me fucking insane and I needed an answer. Anyway, I reasoned, if I didn't – as Blondie so eloquently put it – 'get my shit together' I wouldn't be much good on the battlefield.

I decided to try it one more time. I took a deep breath and allowed my heart to follow the connection that held my soul to Nessie's. I still loved her - of this I was certain - but I could feel her slipping away. I reached out to her through the imprint bond, but it was like trying to catch water with an open hand.

Goddammit, what the fuck is wrong with me? I growled in frustration, and did the only thing I could till I got this shit sorted - I headed back out of the tent to train some more.


	19. Chapter 19

**A/N **_– _**All Twilight characters belong to Stephanie Meyer. **

* * *

><p><strong>Recap<strong>:

_"You do not understand," Katerina's voice was suddenly lowered to a quiet whisper as she imparted the knowledge that would haunt me for many days to come._

_"He is __the__ Great Dragon – A being of unimaginable magic and power, forged in the fires of Hell and old as time itself. The Great Dragon of the Apocalypse, the ancient serpent of myth and legend. And he wants you."_

* * *

><p><em>Renesmee POV<em>

In the three days that I'd been cooped up in here with Katerina, she had shared with me more glimpses into her life, and I was slowly beginning to understand more about her. She had experienced much – and lost much - in her life, a life spent in servitude to the monster that was now holding me prisoner. She didn't say anything explicitly, nor did she answer when I asked her, but I sensed that Drago had had a hand in the loss of her only child. And yet she remained loyal to him. She spoke of him almost with a kind of reverence, which bothered me no end.

"The Great Dragon is an ancient being, and rumoured to be as old as time itself," Katerina had told me. "Lord Drago's origins are unknown, but the legends say that he led a rebellion against his father and for this was cast out of his father's kingdom. And so he has walked among us ever since."

So apparently Drago was _the_ Great Dragon, among being known by a variety of other names. _Big freakin' whoop_, I thought – who cares anyway what names he has? Actually, _I'd_ thought up a few choice names for him myself, but I didn't think they'd be repeatable in polite company.

But it wasn't the fact that he was the Great Dragon that worried me – it was the whole '_his magic draws its source from one which is ancient and primeval_' thing that really had me anxious. It just sounded so ominous. And then there was that strange obsession he had about imprinting. Actually, maybe _that _was what really bothered me. It was almost like he had some kind of manic fascination with it, and it made me uneasy.

In between trying to work out what was the deal with Drago's imprinting obsession and trying to find a way to escape, I think I was slowly going mad.

I had spent the last three days trying to think of every possible which way to escape. But every time I came close to what seemed like a foolproof plan to evade my captors, something would happen to tear it down. With the benefit of 20/20 hindsight, I should have just pretended to not have gotten my powers back. That way, there wouldn't be bars on the windows and doors, and I could have just leapt over the walls and made a run for it when no-one was looking. I felt so stupid. I could literally have kicked myself, but now that I had my half-vampire strength back I didn't want to risk breaking my leg – _that_ would have just been the icing on the cake.

I looked out through the windows again, past the courtyard and beyond to the mountains on the horizon. And as I had done so many times in the last few days, I wondered where Jake was. If I had my powers back, as did Drago, then Jake's powers should have returned too. Why hadn't he come for me? Was he still injured? Worse yet, was he dead? I felt a cold stab of pain at that thought, as a lump formed in my throat and the tears involuntarily welled up in my eyes. I reminded myself that because I could still feel the pull of the imprint over the mountains, that at least meant that my Jacob still lived and breathed. But just because he was still alive didn't mean that he wasn't hurt.

I took comfort in the thought that if Jake had gotten his powers back, the accelerated healing should have kicked in as well. At least, I hoped that was what had happened. I just wished there was some way I could know for sure. The only inkling I had was through the imprint connection I felt. Or did I? It felt different these past few days, and I couldn't work out why. It felt like something was pulling me away from Jake. Or more to the point, it felt like the imprint pull was being … redirected - if that was the right word for it - away from him and to somewhere else. But that was impossible. Jake and I were bonded by something more pure and powerful than anything I'd ever known. Our souls were inexplicably linked – He was my sunshine, my everything, my soulmate. I loved him, and there was no denying this. But something unknown was pulling me away from him.

It reminded me of how I felt in that strange dream I'd had of being in the meadow – trying so desperately to reach him but not being able to get any closer. In the dream I had been trying tell him how much I loved and missed him, but the words falling from my lips were completely at odds with what I was trying to say. I remembered the eerie feeling of being pulled away from him even as I kept struggling against the unknown force that had dragged me into the numbing darkness.

Huh, numbing darkness- That's almost a pretty apt description of how I'd been feeling for the last day or so – not quite in the dark, but numb nonetheless. I wondered if the sedative that maniac Drago had drugged me with three – or was it four? – days ago still hadn't worn off completely. Everything felt so clouded lately. But this was a different cloudiness to when the Veil had suppressed my supernatural abilities. This cloudiness was like – God, I don't know how to describe it – I just felt so 'duh', like I had a head cold – or at least, how I imagined a head cold would feel if I had ever had one.

"Huhhhhrrr…" I sighed, mooning and moaning about my predicament. Katerina looked up from the tapestry she was working on.

"My lady?"

"I'm fine," I mumbled. "Just bored. So how about we get outta here and go for a walk?" I grinned.

"Lady Renesmee, you know as well as I do that Lord Drago will not allow that. " Katerina scolded. Oh well, it was worth a try, I thought to myself as I turned back to look out the window again and resumed my ponderings.

I'd grown fond of Katerina over the last few days. As far as companions went, she wasn't too bad. I was beginning to get glimpses into who and how she was, and as far as I could tell she had a good heart. She was sweet, in a schoolmarmish kind of way, and was never cruel or unkind to me.

Drago on the other hand was a different story. He had me on edge constantly with his schizophrenic way of interacting with me. One moment he'd be all smiles and charming, and then next thing I knew he'd be snapping and levelling veiled threats at me. I figured he was a man used to getting what he wanted, and when I wasn't playing nice, his frustrations got the better of him. Or he was just an asshole. Probably the latter, I decided.

That said, he'd seemed to be more bearable in the last day or so, and this room didn't seem so bad either. Like I said before, maybe I was going mad. Seriously though, I don't know whether it was because I was getting used to it, or if I'd just gotten worn down - but Drago didn't seem quite so detestable anymore. The undercurrent of ruthlessness was still there, although I could tell he was trying his best to play nice. I wondered whether Drago was just misunderstood. Hold on, what? What the hell? Where did that come from? Could I actually be feeling some empathy for that jerk? No way, I told myself.

And almost on cue, the doors opened and he swept into the room.

"Renesmee," he crooned, holding his arms out towards me as he crossed the floor. I didn't move from where I was leaning against the window sill. If he expected me to be happy to see him, he had another think coming. It was only mid-morning and already this was the second time I'd seen him today. As as far as I was concerned, that was two times too many.

"Come now, my dear. Surely you can manage a smile for me?"

I looked away from him, and resumed my gazing out the window. I continued to ignore him and when I heard the sound of the door opening and closing, I thought with relief that he'd left. I turned away from the window, only to find Drago standing just inches away from me. Turns out it was Katerina who had left the room - on his instruction, I presumed. I didn't like being left alone with him, and I felt my back stiffen at the thought of it.

Drago leaned in as he traced a finger down the side of my neck, from my earlobe to my collarbone. I was backed up against the barred window, and had nowhere to go. He brushed a stray hair away from my face.

"I wish you wouldn't do that," I grumbled.

"But why not, Renesmee? You are mine."

"No, I'm not," I retorted. "I may be your prisoner, but I'm not _yours_." I sneered the last word at him, trying to remove any doubt about _exactly_ where I stood.

He didn't say anything. Normally about now, he'd threaten to throw me in the dungeon or threaten to wipe out the village. We'd done this dance so many times over the last few days, and to be honest, it was getting old. I waited for the inevitable flash of anger, but there was nothing. He was instead looking at me if he was searching for some kind of sign.

"You will surrender to me," he smiled. And then with a glint of surety in his eye that made me shudder he added, "sooner than you think."

He took my hand and placed a chaste kiss on the inside of wrist. I tried to pull away, but my arm wouldn't obey. It was as if I was frozen. His piercing dark eyes met mine and I felt a strange pull towards him. I was suddenly conscious of the heat of his touch, and the strength in his tall muscled body. I unwillingly broke the gaze and turned away.

"As I said," Drago smirked, "sooner than you think." And with that, he touched my cheek again and then turned and left the room.

I stared after him at the closed door. What the hell just happened? Why didn't I pull away? And what was that strange pull I felt towards the man I hated so much? I remembered the heat of his touch on my skin and it didn't repulse or anger me as it normally would have. I shook my head in disbelief.

I deliberately refocussed my thoughts to Jake. The empty ache in my chest still tugged, but its direction was weaker somehow. No, that wasn't right – it wasn't weaker, it was just … less focussed? I felt so confused. Maybe I _was_ going mad.

I closed my eyes, trying to concentrate on my Jake. I loved him, I loved him so much – of this I was certain. But what was this strange _other_ feeling that was stealing in like a burglar in the night, trying to steer me down a different path? Jake was my soulmate, my warmth, my sunshine. He was my everything. I so desperately wanted to be with him again. But now, I couldn't explain it, but I wanted something else too.

With a jolt, I realised I was starting to waver. And to my horror, I realised it was towards Drago.

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><p><strong>AN** – _Aaaaghh… I know, I know, please don't hate me for writing this chapter!_


	20. Chapter 20

**A/N **_– We're getting close to the end now – maybe another few chapters plus an epilogue to go – so I just wanted to take the opportunity to say thank you to all the readers, and especially the reviewers, who have stuck with the story this far. You make it all worthwhile! _

**All Twilight characters belong to Stephanie Meyer. **

* * *

><p><strong>Recap<strong>:

_I decided to try it one more time. I took a deep breath and allowed my heart to follow the connection that held my soul to Nessie's. I still loved her - of this I was certain - but I could feel her slipping away. I reached out to her through the imprint bond, but it was like trying to catch water with an open hand._

_Goddammit, what the fuck is wrong with me? I growled in frustration, and did the only thing I could till I got this shit sorted - I headed back out of the tent to train some more._

* * *

><p><em>Jacob POV<em>

I was cooling my heels outside Merlin's tent. Once I realised that I was getting nowhere with trying to concentrate, continuing to train was pretty much a lost cause for today. So I'd thrown in the towel and left Emmett and Blondie to finish the latest shift with the wolves. I didn't know how long I'd been waiting out here, but it fucking felt like forever. I was _this _close to barging into the tent, when they finally came out.

"Jacob," Carlisle looked at me in surprise as he saw me pacing impatiently outside, "Is everything all right?"

"Uh, yeah, sure Doc – everything's fine," I lied. It was a reflex action. As soon as the words left my mouth, I wanted to backpedal, but how the hell was I supposed to say that I missed my girlfriend so much that I was starting to imagine that she didn't want me anymore - _without_ sounding like some pathetic lovesick puppy? Carlisle and Merlin looked at me sceptically as I shuffled restlessly back and forth, trying to decide what to do. Aaghhrr... _fuck it_, I thought. I may as well come clean.

"Actually, ummm… everything's not okay," I mumbled, as they continued to contemplate me. "Uh, I'm probably just overreacting, but I feel like something's wrong with me and Ness."

"In what way?" Carlisle asked, arching one eyebrow. Merlin just kept looking at me intently. It was kinda creeping me out.

And then I saw Jasper and Eddie boy wander out of the tent too. Thanks, Universe – just stick the boot in while you're at it. Can my humiliation get any worse. Now I'm gonna have to explain this shit in front of the freakin' father-in-law and the walking emotional medicator. It's not as if Eddie wouldn't have already heard it in my head and Jasper would have felt my inner turmoil, but saying it out loud was just embarrassing. If they gave me shit about this, I was gonna break both of their arms. The corners of Edward's mouth twitched. I fucking hated it when he did that _– it's not funny, bloodsucker_, I glared at him. Then I redirected my attention back to Carlisle and Merlin.

"It's the imprint bond," I said, trying my best not to sound like a whiny-ass wuss. "It feels like it's less focussed, like I can't feel _her_. The pull – the gravity - is still there, but the anchor that holds it feels off somehow."

All four of them looked at me, unflinching. Great, I thought, they think I'm some kind of lovesick freak. I was never gonna live this down. I wish they'd just say something. The silent staring was unnerving, and it was starting to creep me out.

"Look, I get that this rates a bit farther down the 'shit happens' scale than the impending apocalypse," I muttered, "but it's driving me nuts. I just need Merlin to do his hocus pocus thing, and tell me what's wrong and how to fix it."

The four of them exchanged looks, as if there was some unspoken secret among them.

"What?" I snapped. "What's with the looks?"

"Jacob, I think you should sit down," Edward said, putting his hand on my shoulder. I fucking hated it when people said that. It usually meant one of two things – there was bad news, or there was really bad news.

"I'm fine standing right here," I snapped, folding my arms across my chest. "Whatever it is, just spit it out." They all obviously knew something I didn't, and being the last one to find out about shit was really starting to piss me off. Carlisle cleared his throat and began to speak.

"All right then," Carlisle said. "Well, Edward was just giving us the intel from the latest round of recon that he and Jasper ran. While he wasn't able to read anything from Drago's mind – he can shield himself somehow - Edward was able to glean some very important information from the minds of some of the people in the castle." He paused ominously. Why the fuck did he have to do that? I hated it when he did that.

"Okay, soooo… " I didn't really know where the Doc was going with this. "What does this have to do with Nessie, apart from the fact that that fu… umm, that Drago is holding her hostage?"

"It has everything to do with her, son," Edward answered sombrely. "According to the prophecy, whoever has Renesmee will be the victor in this war."

"Yeah, I know that's what the prophecy says, but there's no war!" I growled at him. "We're just dealing with a kidnapping … aren't we?"

"If only it were that simple," Edward sighed. "Yes, it would appear to be just a kidnapping – for now - but the situation is escalating closer to war with every passing hour. Since Drago got his powers back, he has been trying to break the seal between the two worlds. If he is successful then he will take his army through the portal and – well, you get the picture. Having Renesmee in his possession has only strengthened his resolve to do this. He recognises however that she is being held against her will, and he will have to watch her every waking moment to prevent her escaping. So he needs to find some way to make her _want_ to stay. He has tried threatening to harm us, to harm the village, but Renesmee knows that we can protect ourselves and the villagers, so that did not work. Merlin's force field is also continuing to hold, so he cannot harm the village that way either. Drago has worked out, however, that Renesmee's need to be with you is what is driving her to keep trying to escape. He needs to break whatever it is that is holding her links to the outside world." Edward paused before continuing.

"Jacob, he tried to break the imprint."

The words hung in the air. He did what? That fucker tried to break the imprint? What the fuck? But Eddie boy said 'tried', right? That means that it didn't work, right? Right? RIGHT?

"That is correct Jacob," Edward answered, having read my thoughts. "Drago has not been successful in that particular endeavour. So instead, he has been 'bending' the imprint – or more to the point, shifting the focus of Renesmee's connection with you to instead be towards him."

I felt sick to my stomach. I wanted to say something, but my throat felt dry. The rage that was building in my body triggered the familiar tremors that preceded the phasing. But I took a deep breath and managed to push it back down.

"How can he do this, when even the Veil didn't seem to affect the imprint?" I growled.

"From what I can tell," Merlin answered, "the magic of the imprint is stronger and more pure than anything we've ever known. My theory is that the imprint, in and of itself, doesn't _make_ anything happen, rather it just gives a tangible form to what is already there. In other words, the imprint did not _make_ you love Renesmee, nor did it make you into soulmates – In essence, all it did was make you recognise her for who she is when you looked into her eyes – the windows to the soul, so to speak. And so I am guessing that this is why the Veil – which _suppressed_ magic - did not affect the imprint. Your love for each other would still exist even without it. The imprint didn't force anything to happen – it just gave a tangibility to the soulmate bond, and allows the connection to each other to be felt in a stronger, more concrete way."

"Drago is not Renesmee's soulmate," Merlin continued, "and so in redirecting the connection to himself, he is trying to force a recognition from her that is not there. But he does not understand the imprint. He thinks that by doing this he can replace her bond to you with one that is instead with him. He is fighting to create something that goes against the natural order of things, and so it is taking a significant effort for him to hold it there. That may be the only reason why he hasn't yet managed to break the seal between the two worlds. Jacob, you still feel the connection to Renesmee but have misgivings about the anchor's foothold. Your feelings have not changed – that is, you feel and know with certainty that you love her as much as ever - am I correct?" I nodded, and Merlin continued.

"I am surmising that what Renesmee is going through is probably similar, although from her perspective it will seem as though the connection as a whole is fuzzy, and on the edges may even appear to be being dragged towards Drago. This is because it is the imprint – the tangibility of the connection – is what is being interfered with, not the connection itself. As I said before, the imprint does not make you soulmates. Its magic is what gives clarity and tangibility to the soulmate bond.

As I let what I'd just been told sink in, that recurring dream of Nessie in the meadow suddenly started to make sense. The words from her lips -_'Goodbye, my Jacob'_- as she reached out to me were at odds with the truth of her actions. And that was exactly what was happening here.

I couldn't decide if my fears were relieved or worsened. Relieved that Nessie still loved me. Relieved that it was just the connection that was being messed with, and not how she truly felt about me. Relieved that she wasn't really slipping way and into someone else's arms. And at the same time a horrible sinking anxiety knowing that Drago's messing with the imprint bond may have been the only reason he hadn't yet broken the seal that separated the two worlds.

I straightened myself up. I knew what I had to do. The resolve that coursed through every fibre of my being gave me renewed strength and focus.

It was time to go get my girl.

"We've waited around long enough," I said to the four vampires who were still looking at me. "The wolves are ready to fight. All we need is a way into the castle. With or without you, we're moving on the castle at dawn tomorrow. Tell me everything you know."

I walked into the tent and they followed me. Merlin began running through with me the outcomes of all the research he had done. A plan was starting to form in my mind, but the details still needed to be unpacked further. One thing I did know for certain though, was that once I got my hands on Drago, I was going to rip apart every damn piece of that fucker, one strip at a time.


	21. Chapter 21

**A/N **_– _**All Twilight characters belong to Stephenie Meyer. **

_**Recap:**_

_I closed my eyes, trying to concentrate on my Jake. I loved him, I loved him so much – of this I was certain. But what was this strange other feeling that was stealing in like a burglar in the night, trying to steer me down a different path? Jake was my soulmate, my warmth, my sunshine. He was my everything. I so desperately wanted to be with him again. But now, I couldn't explain it, but I wanted something else too._

_With a jolt, I realised I was starting to waver. And to my horror, I realised it was towards Drago._

* * *

><p><em>Renesmee POV<em>

I couldn't sleep. The horrible realisation that had dawned on me this morning had me so wound up in knots that I just wanted to cry. I wanted my Jake. But I also wanted Drago. No, I didn't want Drago – I just didn't _not_ want him. Ugh… does that even make sense? God, I'm so confused. _What's wrong with me?_ I didn't love Drago – of _that_ I was certain. But the squeezing in my heart was unbearable. I felt as if I was stuck between two worlds, and afraid to walk away from either one.

I got out of bed and walked over to the window. Katerina stirred when she sensed me move. The woman must have a motion detector set up in her brain or something.

"My Lady…?" she asked, starting to get up.

"Go back to sleep, Katerina," I said, motioning to her to lie back down. "I'm just going to sit here by the window for awhile."

Katerina watched as I dragged a chair over to one of the windows. When she saw me settle into the chair, she lay her head back down and not long after I recognised the sounds of her sleeping. I turned my attention back to the window and looked out through the bars and into the clear night sky. There were two and a half moons hovering behind slivers of silver cloud. I thought they looked like eerie ships floating in the black ocean of sky. I could hear the guards shuffling around in the courtyard below and the rhythmic rise and fall of Katerina's rested breathing. Other than that though, there was complete silence. I thought it was strange that everything was so quiet – almost like the calm before a storm – but hey, everything was strange here. Hell, we were in a completely different dimension – who was I to say what was weird and what wasn't?

My gaze dropped from the sky over to the mountains, to where my Jake was. I felt the empty ache pull at my chest and the hot tears start to sting the edge of my eyes. How could I ever face him again? I didn't even know for sure whether my Jake lived or died, and already I was wavering towards someone else. To make matters worse, it was towards the one who had orchestrated the attack that had left him bloodied and broken, and then had kidnapped and imprisoned me. I wondered if maybe I had fallen victim to Stockholm Syndrome, but that would have just been too convenient an excuse. I had no defence. I was just an unworthy, undeserving, faithless girl who wavered towards the nearest man the first time I was apart from the one who was supposed to be the love of my life. I hated my cheating heart. I hated how it made me feel. And most of all I hated myself.

I looked out over the mountains again. The empty ache in my chest still tugged towards it, but it was so fuzzy. I felt the hot tears spill over, and quietly I wept. Tears of remorse for being so weak, for betraying the one who was my life and soul, the one who should have been my one and only - My Jacob, who loved me unconditionally and unwaveringly. How could I ever face him again?

I continued weeping, silently cursing my faithless heart.

.

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_Jacob POV_

We stole silently through the forest, making our way to the castle. A few of Drago's scouts had been caught spying on the village and a few more were caught trying to break through Merlin's barrier. We had captured and imprisoned them, so they couldn't go back to their master with news of what was afoot.

All around us, the sounds of the forest were eerily quiet, as if its inhabitants could sense that something huge was about go down. And yeah, I guess it was.

Yesterday when I'd made Merlin tell me everything his research had uncovered, he shared some very useful new intel about the prophecy and the legends which we were able to incorporate into our plan of attack. Nothing of the new information was too much of a surprise though, except for the history Merlin revealed between him and Drago.

When the old vamp had first told us about the prophecy, he'd let slip about facing down Drago _again_. I remembered the bitterness in his voice when he had talked about his enemy, and I was painfully conscious of the fact that he had tried to hide it. At the time though, I had decided that pursuing an answer then and there probably wasn't going to do much good. But we were at a crossroads now, and I needed to know as much as possible if I was going to bring down the fucker that had dared to kidnap my girl.

"There's more going on here than you're letting on, Merlin," I had growled at him yesterday. "Tell me everything, and this time don't leave anything out. Especially all the stuff that went on between you and Drago. The vibes I'm picking up are more than just the usual good-guy bad-guy antagonism – This is personal. "

"Very well," the ancient vampire had sighed, shifting uncomfortably. "I have not shared this information before – Firstly because I am not proud of my role in creating the situation that has led us to become mortal enemies, and secondly because I did not believe this information to be necessary to our planning. But you are right - To understand what drives your enemy, you must understand what it is that has shaped him into who he is." And so Merlin began his tale.

We listened, as Merlin recounted how Drago had demanded a tribal chief's daughter be promised to him as recompense for some trespass the villagers had unwittingly committed against him. Around this time, Merlin had also made his way to the Americas, having learned that Drago was the prophesied Last Great Tyrant. He had tracked Drago to the outskirts of the village where he had learned of the fate that was to befall the chief's daughter. He had told himself to stay on-mission, and that the comings and goings of the locals were of no consequence to him. But he had, despite his own resistance, fallen in love with their chief's daughter and in doing so had made her people his own. They had planned to run away together. But they feared the wrath that would be visited upon the villagers once Drago learned what had happened. Knowing the role that Drago was destined to play in the final war, Merlin knew that he couldn't risk leaving his business unfinished.

And so Merlin had lifted part of that world into this one and formed this realm, taking with him the villagers who wished to follow. He knew that Drago would pursue them, and once he was sure of his enemy's arrival he had sealed the pathway between the two worlds and then drawn down the Veil, suppressing all that was magic. So while the Veil existed and Drago was trapped here, Drago was just a warlord. But now that it had been lifted, he had his powers back, and he was once again a powerful sorcerer.

"Why didn't you just kill him?" I had growled at Merlin. "Why go through all this drama? Why let it go on for almost two thousand years when you could have just put a stop to it?"

"Do you not think I have tried?" Merlin cried in exasperation. He suddenly seemed more tired and drawn than I had ever seen before. "I have tried, every which way, and so many times. I am fairly certain Drago cannot be killed. He is a being more ancient that any I have ever encountered. His power draws its source from one that is said to be older than time itself. We have fought before, and we matched each other blow for blow. While he had his powers, he was my magical equal. But while the Veil was drawn, I was as powerless as he. And so we have danced precariously around each other for millennia, handicapped by our circumstances."

"So why did you do all this?" Carlisle had asked his old friend softly. "Why did you flee with your beloved and risk all by trapping Drago in this world with you, suppressing all your powers and leaving yourselves as defenceless as he? Why give up all the riches you could have had, instead for this simple existence? And why stay on here even when she had passed away so many lifetimes ago?"

"After a while," the ancient vampire had whispered sadly, "the jewels no longer sparkle, and the gold no longer gleams. All that's left that is worth anything anymore is the love of one woman. And once she is gone, all you can do is protect what she held dear. And so I stayed and protected her people – _my_ people."

And with that, Merlin had finished his tale. So now we knew that Drago couldn't be killed. Well, at least not while he still had his powers. But if the Veil were to be drawn down again, we were pretty much back to where we started. _Fuck_. So if we were gonna have to do this powers and all, was there was there really no way to get rid of him once and for all?

If, as I suspected, Drago saw this as a rematch of the conflict that had taken place all those centuries ago, his will to win would be all the more stronger. He had lost the first time. His pride was unlikely to tolerate a second loss. I had originally thought that the whole thing with Merlin's woman had just muddied the situation, but now I realised I was wrong. It actually made this whole mess so much clearer. It also went a long way to explaining why Drago was messing with the imprint. In his twisted mind, he was drawing parallels between getting the girl and winning the war. In some ways though it was more true this time around, because of Nessie's role in the prophecy. But last time, Merlin taken Drago's woman away and then emasculated him further by taking away his powers. And now the fucker wanted payback.

We'd spent most of the night scenario planning, using Alice's powers to help with working what would and wouldn't work. I hadn't slept much, and I should have been exhausted but the adrenalin that was coursing through my body had me on high alert. This fight was a long time coming, and I was going to give it I everything I had.

We slowed as we came to the edge of the forest. The first slivers of dawn were just creeping over the horizon as we gathered at the forest edge at the perimeter of the castle grounds.

I wondered for a moment whether it was such a good idea to launch into this so quickly. I mean, yesterday I'd been all gung-ho to move on the castle but now that we were actually here, I wondered if everything was bedded down as well as I thought. Maybe we should have given ourselves a bit more time to refine the plan. No, no way. It was now or never. Nessie needed me. _And I needed her_.

The plan was relatively simple: weaken the enemy, bait them, and then attack. I guess we were about to find out how good my battle strategy really was.

Now that we'd arrived, I realised that was the closest I'd been to Nessie since she was taken. I took a deep breath, and reached out to her through the imprint bond.

And then for the first time in days, I felt her. Clear as day, _I felt her_.

.

.

.

_Renesmee POV_

I was awakened by a sudden pulling in my chest, as if the connection I had to Jake had abruptly snapped back into place. All the uncertainty of the last few days dropped away, and I felt like myself again. I could still feel the dry tracks of last night's tears on my cheeks, and guessed that I must have cried myself to sleep in the chair. The first fragments of dawn were just starting to break on the horizon, and it occurred to me that that was how my heart felt - Like the cloudy seas I had been lost in had finally dissipated and the light was finally starting to break through.

The doors suddenly flung open, jolting me out of my thoughts. The suddenness of the movement surprised me, and I had only time to take half a breath before I realised that Drago stood only inches from me. His face was dark with anger, and instinctively I took a step back. I had never seen him this angry before. He scowled murderously at me, and for a moment I felt the icy shudder of fear as it shot through my veins.

"What have you done?" he thundered, his eyes ablaze with fury. I took another step back. Katerina got up, hurrying over.

"My Lord…" she began, but was silenced by a resounding slap that sent her tumbling to the floor.

"Drago, stop," I cried at him, as I scrambled down to Katerina to make sure she was all right. "Was that really necessary? My God, what kind of monster are you?"

"You," he glared at me through narrowed eyes. "What have you done? I was so close to success, and now the connection is broken. How did you do this?" He turned around and glowered at Katerina, "Did _you_ help her?"

"No, no, my lord,"Katerina whimpered, "I would not dare to cross you. I have done all that you asked."

"The connection has snapped back," he gave her a murderous glare. "She could not have done this on her own. You must have done something wrong."

"Excuse me," I pointed out, my fear taking a backseat for the time being. "I don't really appreciate being talked about in the third person when I'm standing right here. What the hell are you going on about?"

Before Drago could answer, I heard a thunderous crash, followed by shouting from the courtyard below and the clanging of weapons just beyond the walls of the castle. He turned abruptly and left the room, leaving me standing there dumbfounded. What the hell had just happened? Then I realised that Katerina was still there.

"Okay Katerina," I turned around to her. "You better tell me what Drago was going on about, and then we're sorting out what's going on outside. Talk."

.

.

.

_Jacob POV_

The wolves moved silently into place around the perimeter of the castle. Edward and Emmett stole into the castle to execute the initial stages of the plan. Quietly they disarmed the sentries, one by one, so that the alarms couldn't be raised and we would retain our advantage of surprise. At the same time, Merlin began using his powers to remove the ground from the foot of the fortress walls so as to weaken its foundations.

Once the sentries were disarmed, Edward was to give us the signal to attack. We waited with bated breath, the tension hanging heavily in the air. The adrenalin coursing through my body gave me a heightened clarity and alertness, and I almost felt like I was going to jump out of my skin. We continued to watch, as the dirt beneath the fortress walls continued its silent, gradual movement out of the wall's base.

As we waited, I reached out to Nessie through the imprint bond again. Yes, I could still feel her. The pull in my chest tugged towards the Northern wall of the castle – that must be where she was being held. Maybe it was the closer physical proximity to her, maybe it was something else, but this was the most distinct the connection had felt for days. And it was absofuckinglutely awesome!

I saw something shimmer in the sunlight and flash of bronze sweep past the top of the fortress wall, and realised it must have been Edward. I directed my thoughts to him, indicating that I sensed Nessie's location to be around the North side of the castle. He stopped and nodded his acknowledgement, and then signalled that all the sentries had been disarmed and captured.

With a final sweep of his arms, Merlin scooped a massive chunk of ground from beneath the fortress walls, and they came crumbling down with a thundering crash.

We had caught the enemy completely by surprise. With the fortress walls gone, the archers had no high ground from which to launch their arrows, and so they were forced to shoot from the ground which was far less effective. A throng of soldiers surged forth from the castle gates, but we were ready for them. We had placed most of our forces to attack from the East, so that the sun was at our backs and would impact our enemy's line of sight and give us the advantage.

They rushed at us, and with a resounding roar we went forward to meet them.

The centre of our battle formation was left deliberately weak to invite the enemy to attack there, allowing us to envelop them when they took the bait. And waiting behind our apparently weak centre was a tactical reserve of more fighters to take them down. This formation had two benefits - by placing the equivalent of the infantry in the centre and the cavalry on the wings, we could prevent the centre from being outflanked; secondly, once the battle turned and the enemy started to retreat, the 'cavalry' could move forward and cut them down. Merlin also raised a windstorm to confuse the enemy with dust, and combined with the battle formation and the sun at our backs, one by one Drago's soldiers were swiftly dealt with. It all happened so fast, to the human eye it would have just been a massive blur. We avoided hurting the soldiers as much as possible, instead trying to capture and imprison them in the cages that Merlin had created using his power to, as Emmett had described it "make shit out of thin air."

We were almost done when I heard a sound that made everybody stop dead in their tracks. It was like a cross between a sickening snarl and a deafening crack of thunder. The air around us reverberated, and I spun around to see where it was coming from. I looked up to the central tower of the castle and sucked in a deep breath.

Perched on the tower, its wings splayed angrily was, literally, the biggest fucking dragon I'd ever seen. And man, did he look supremely pissed.


	22. Chapter 22

**A/N **_– Hi Everyone - Sorry for the long hiatus. I was having a lot of trouble translating the jumbled mess of scenes in my head into words onscreen - well into words that would translate to a chapter that people who can't read my mind would understand anyway! So here it is... finally! :)_

**All Twilight characters belong to Stephanie Meyer. **

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><p><em>Jacob POV<em>

I stood there, frozen. Holy. Fuck. I couldn't decide whether to be amazed or scared shitless. Merlin had said that Drago was the Great Dragon, but some part of me still held out hope that it didn't mean the bastard was literally gonna morph into a massive fire-spewing reptile.

I snapped myself out of it. Standing around gawking like a stunned mullet was only going to get us killed. I concentrated my thoughts out to the pack and handed out the battle orders. Quick as a flash, the wolves fanned out into 'Plan B' formation – the one which we would have used if Drago's men had failed to take the bait and rush us. Given Drago's current location on the central tower and his seeming reluctance to move from it, this formation would deal with the situation nicely. The Cullens saw the wolves moving into place, and they also took their positions.

Slowly we approached the castle. We had to be extra careful - although Merlin had created a transparent shield around each of us as fire protection, the catch was that creating lots of smaller shields as opposed to just one large one also meant that the force field's strength had to be shared among many - and so its strength was therefore weaker overall. The wolves were by no means fireproof, but the vamps were more flammable than petrol and if a spark got through the shield, they were toast – literally. Merlin had also coated each of the vamps with a thin layer of flame retardant. It stunk like hell and wasn't a fireproof suit or anything like that, but at least it would stop them bursting into flames if they accidentally got licked by a spark.

We continued our silent approach towards Drago. His army had been all but defeated, but a small contingent of soldiers still stood at the foot of the castle and along what was left of its fortress walls. Drago looked around at the pack of giant wolves and vamps slowly converging on his castle, and I saw the realisation dawn on him that he was now surrounded on all sides, and that what remained of his soldiers were no match for us. He roared angrily, sending flames spiralling at us but thankfully the shields continued to hold.

We made short work of the remainder of Drago's soldiers and sent them packing. This only served to anger him even more, as he continued hissing fire and brimstone at us. It was annoyingly clear that the last thing the bastard wanted to do was budge from his perch on the tower. Problem was, for our strategy to work, we needed to lure Drago out onto open ground. We were at an impasse. I needed to do something to bring this to a head.

And so I walked out to the centre of the field and phased back to human.

"Drago," I called out, challenging him, "You dare to kidnap my imprint and then attempt to destroy that which is sacred to my people. You will pay for this."

"And who is going to make me? Do you fancy it shall be you, _boy_?" he sneered the last word, hissing out another flame as if punctuating his disdain. It took me by surprise. I had expected him to have to phase back to human in order to be able to speak, but here he was, talking to us in his non-human form – which hinted at the true strength of his powers. I looked at Merlin, and he nodded, confirming our earlier suspicions that Drago's magic was older and more powerful than any we had ever encountered before. He was clearly no ordinary shifter. I steeled myself for what was to come, and spoke clearly in answer to him -

"Drago, come down here and give me a fair fight. Or," I taunted, "are you going to keep hiding up there like a coward?"

There was a deafening roar, followed by the air reverberating abruptly around us. Amidst the beating of giant wings and the sudden surge of flames I found around me, I realised that Drago was now on the ground only metres away from me.

My ruse had worked. He was right where I wanted him.

"I will give you a fair fight, _boy_," Drago sneered scornfully, his voice cruel and rasping, "but do not expect that I will fight fairly." And with that I was met with another rush of fire aimed squarely at me. The shield was thankfully still holding, but I could feel it weakening. The heat of the flames was already licking at my skin, and I knew I had to be quick or I'd be wolf-kabob. I started backing away, knowing that Drago would follow me.

He lunged towards me but then came to a sudden stop, as if he'd run up against some invisible wall.

He couldn't move more than a few inches in any direction, and he roared and fought, but to no avail. He was trapped within the confines of a red circle that had been drawn into the ground, and he knew there was nothing he could do. I breathed a sigh of relief – the plan had worked.

... ~ ooo00 Flashback 00ooo ~ ...

_Three more hours until our scheduled departure from the village. We were gathered around the table in Merlin's tent, doing a final recap of the information we had to hand so far. The conundrum we faced was that, with the Veil now lifted, Drago couldn't be killed. And so the only avenue that was left was to trap him. _

_The scrolls foretold of how each side in this war between fire and ice held the Achilles heel of the other – the one weakness that would bring them down. Just as the fiery breath of the Great Dragon could visit death upon his ice-cold enemy, so would the blood of the cold ones bind and then banish him. _

_If you ask me, this was poetic justice at its best. But there was a catch – _

The blood that binds must be pure of deed,

The blood that banishes must be pure of body.

_Could this mean the blood had to belong to vamp who had never killed a human and/or allowed human blood to pass their lips? We scanned through the scrolls again, this time through the lens of what we now suspected, and our hunch was confirmed. Two separate lots of blood were required – one to bind, and the other to banish. The scrolls confirmed that the blood used to bind must be from one who has never killed a human, and the other must be from one who has never tasted of human blood. _

_The vamps all looked around at each other. None of them were saints. Even Carlisle had history. Of all of them, Bella was the only one who had never killed a human, but even she had drunk human blood before – albeit from donated bags, when she was pregnant with Nessie, but human blood had nonetheless passed her lips. But as the scrolls said, two were needed – one to bind, and the other to banish. And we had only one. Fuck._

"_Er… look, I might be able to help," Blondie spoke up._

"_I don't see how," I snapped at her. "Didn't you rip your ex-fiance and his buddies to shreds?"_

"_Shut up and let me finish, mutt. Yes, I killed Royce and those assholes. And I'm not sorry for what I did - they deserved it. But I didn't bite them. Human blood has never passed my lips. I've told you all this before – or maybe no-one believed me?"_

"_Oh Rose," Esme cried and hugged her daughter. The others moved in, hugging her as well. There were smiles and cheers all around. _

_I just stood there, trying to process all this. So if I had this right, Blondie was going to save the world? I snorted and shook my head, but couldn't help a smile curving my lips. Who woulda thought? _

"_Yes Jacob - Who would have thought?" I felt Edward's cold hand on my shoulder._

"_So …" I grinned back at him, "You know Blondie's never gonna let us forget this." _

"_I suspect she won't," Edward smiled, patting my shoulder._

"_That's my girl," Emmett beamed, as Eddie and I watched him wrap his wife up in a massive bear hug before dipping her backwards and kissing the hell out of her._

... ~ ooo00 End Flashback 00ooo ~ ...

Drago thrashed and roared inside the circle of Bella's blood that we had secretly drawn into the open ground before the battle started. He roared in fury, lifting himself up to his full height and craning his neck back in readiness to throw a deadly flame at us. And this was precisely the moment we were waiting for.

As Drago lifted his head, it exposed the one vulnerable part of a dragon's body - his fireheart. The flesh of the fireheart glowed orange-red behind the translucent membrane, beating like a heart of flame just below Drago's chin. I drew my knife and took aim at the one weakness in this otherwise impervious armour.

The target was no bigger in size than a child's fist, and would be almost impossible to hit. I readied my knife, but changed my mind at the last moment. The risk was too great. If my aim was off by even half an inch, it would all be over and our chance would be gone.

I knew what I had to do.

I steeled myself, and took aim._ Go_, the wolf roared, and in the blink of an eye, I had leapt towards the giant dragon, phasing mid-air and sinking my teeth into his neck. One of my fangs broke on the rock hard scales, but the other found its mark in the soft flesh of his fireheart. I felt the heat burn through me, as Drago's roar of pain and fury rang in my ears. He fought to shake me off, but still I kept my hold. And then I felt the heat start to dissipate, as the body of the giant dragon began to shrink and instead I found my giant muzzle wrapped around the neck of a human body.

I stepped back from Drago's body, now in its human form, broken and bleeding on the ground before me. The others came closer, but their curiosity was still tempered by the caution and tension which still lay in the air. They pulled back as Merlin stepped to the front and began marking four opposite corners just outside of the circle in which Drago was trapped.

"You know that I cannot be killed, Merlin." Drago's voice was raspy with pain as he taunted his nemesis. Merlin didn't answer him, instead pulling out a vial of dark red liquid – Rosalie's blood – which he began using to draw lines connecting each previously marked corner to the next.

Drago continued to speak through the dull gurgle of blood in his throat. "I will heal, and then this fight will resume, as it has done for thousands of years. Why not just give up now and save yourself the trouble." He coughed again, and the blood spluttered from his mouth. The wolves had now drawn in closer and we were all gathered around. I could see the looks of pity in their eyes for the man who lay broken and bleeding before us, and we had to force ourselves to remember who he was and the danger that he posed for all mankind.

Merlin continued working in silence, only pausing to murmur an incantation every time he added another symbol to each corner of what was now a square enclosing the circle. I saw now that each marked corner corresponded to each of the four points of the compass - north, east, south and west, and along the line between each corner was drawn a symbol corresponding to each of the four elements – earth, fire, air and water.

Merlin raised the vial and started uttering an incantation. The blood inside the vial began to glow, as did the edges of the drawn-on square and the symbols alongside them. Merlin raised the vial again and spoke –

"With the blood of one who is pure of deed, I bound you."

Drago roared in fury, as Merlin raised the vial again.

"And now with the blood of one who is pure of body, I banish you!" he bellowed, and splashed the glowing vial of red liquid over Drago. The skies went suddenly dark and clouds began to gather menacingly overhead. The wind picked up and I was hit with a sudden panic that the drawn-on circle, square and symbols on the ground would be blown away by the wind, but they remained steadfast and unmoving, as if completely unaffected by the storm that was gaining momentum around us.

The glowing blood that had been spattered on Drago's body began to expand and move of its own accord up his body, slowly engulfing him the way the mercury-like substance at the portal had swallowed up me and Nessie. Drago tried to fight it, but the more he moved, the faster it expanded. At the same time, the glowing symbols signifying the four elements raised themselves off the ground and branded themselves onto the red cocoon now covering Drago's body. The lines that made up the square glowed even brighter. And then, the glowing outline of the square lifted itself up, hovering about ten feet above the ground. It continued glowing brighter until it burned so bright that we had to look away. And then with a flash it plunged back down to the ground and then sunk through it, taking Drago's cocooned body away with it.

We stood there, dumbstruck. It was all so surreal. All that remained now was a charred square outline on the dusty ground, which slowly disintegrated as the now slowing winds blew the dust away.

It was over.

I felt a pull in my heart and instinctively I turned towards it. A warm hand touched mine. Ness. I didn't know how long she'd been standing there, or how much she had seen of what had just happened, but at this moment I just needed to be close to her. I pulled her into my arms and held her like there would be no tomorrow. The emptiness that had haunted me since she'd been gone began to dissolve away at her touch, and I started to feel whole again.

"Ness, baby, are you okay? Are you hurt?" I asked her. She shook her head that she wasn't hurt, and clung to me even tighter.

"Oh Jake, Jake, you're here," Nessie sobbed, wrapping her small arms around me as I cradled her close. "I'm okay now that you're here." She lifted her face to mine, and when I kissed her, I felt the uncertainty and tension of the last few days slide away. And then like one of those scenes from a movie, the clouds dispersed and the morning sun broke through.

As the warm rays hit my skin, I felt the relief wash over me. It was over. Finally, it was over. Drago was gone, and my Ness was safe again.

Oh yeah, and we'd also managed to avert that little something called the apocalypse too.

I closed my eyes and held Nessie close. The sound of cheering and applause rang in the background as everyone celebrated our victory. But my focus was squarely on the tiny bronze-haired angel I cradled close to me, and I drank in the contentment of finally having her back in my arms again.

My Ness was with me, where she should be, and the world was right again.

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><p><strong>AN** – _Just the epilogue left to go now. What did everyone think of this chapter? Too short? Too long? Not dramatic enough? There's the button… Please please PLEASE review and let me know what you think! :)_


	23. Epilogue

**A/N **_– _**All Twilight characters belong to Stephanie Meyer. **

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><p><em>Jacob POV<em>

"Awww… come ON, man!" I watched as Emmett jumped to his feet, yelling at the TV. "For cryin' out loud. What the hell was that? Did you guys see that? DID YOU? That freakin' referee needs a guide dog! Faaaaak me!"

"Emmett!" Blondie scowled from across the room, "Watch your language, please."

"Sorry hun," Undead Hulk grinned sheepishly, sitting back down.

We'd been back for about a week now, and it hadn't taken long for everything to fall back into its normal routine. And this was our Sunday afternoon ritual – me, Emmett and Walking Prozac, sprawled on the couch watching the game. Well, _they_ were watching the game. _I_ was doing my usual thing of pretending to watch the game while looking at Nessie and marvelling at the awesomeness that was my girl. It wasn't that I cared about everyone knowing how completely besotted I was with her, but there's only so much 'Aww, look at the lovesick puppy' shit that a wolf can take from his buddies before it degenerates into arm-breaking.

I looked again at Nessie curled up in the crook of my arm, and my heart swelled with happiness. She was reading some book that, as usual, looked like it had way too many words on way too many pages. I leaned over, kissing the top of her head as I breathed in my Ness's delicious scent and let the contentment wash over me. The events of the past few months – well months in that other world – apparently only two weeks had passed here – now seemed like some distant dream.

With Drago gone, the other world had a void, so to speak, at the top. If history taught us anything, it's that you don't topple one regime without having another one waiting in the wings to take its place – well, not without a whole lot more bloodshed anyway. And so to prevent a new warlord from moving in to take Drago's place, an interim council, headed by the elders of the tribe, had been set up to begin the long task of rebuilding. The wolves took their natural place as protectors of the tribe and its people, and with Merlin as special advisor to the council, they made a formidable team. We stayed for as long as we could, to help Merlin and the villagers integrate the castle's inhabitants into their society, and to help rebuild their homes – which wasn't too hard, considering Merlin's unique abilities.

The soldiers who had been imprisoned during the battle were released after the battle, and while some happily integrated themselves into their world's now peaceful way of life, a small contingent had fled with the intention of regrouping to return and avenge their fallen master. Those men were hunted down, and the matter 'dealt with' once and for all.

Nessie had also finally managed to get an explanation from Katerina about what had been going on with the imprint and why she had begun to feel like she did, which thankfully, hadn't lasted very long. She had been dismayed to learn that Katerina been drugging her food daily so as to increase the confusion she felt. I nearly broke a tree when I found out, but Nessie as usual, took it all in her stride. In some ways, knowing what had happened helped Nessie to deal with the guilt she had been feeling about wavering towards Drago. It had taken awhile, but in the end she only came to terms with it when she finally understood that it had been Drago's magic that was the influence, rather than her true feelings. Eventually she forgave Katerina too, realising that the older woman would have had no choice between the proverbial rock and hard place. In the end, Katerina had moved out of the castle and was now living among the tribe, as many of Drago's people had also chosen to do. She had also become a grandmother, of sorts, to the tribespeople's children and the new home she had made among Merlin's people was filled daily with the chatter of young children.

As suspected, Blondie dined out on the 'I saved the world' card as much as she could. She had become a bit of a local celebrity to the tribespeople, and was lapping up the attention. If they'd had TV over there, I bet she would have had her own reality TV show. The only thing that stopped her milking it was when I started calling her Kim – as in Ms Kardashian. When I stretched out the joke to calling Bella and the Pixie Khloe and Khourtney, Bells punched me in the face. This time her hand was fine, and I ended up with a broken jaw.

By the time the moons had gone into hibernation again making the conditions right for Merlin to reopen the portal again, everything had settled down and everyone seemed to be adjusting well to their new circumstances. And importantly, they were all living together in peace.

Merlin had sent Honiahaka back with us, so that he could pick up the spellbook and take it back with him. Leah and Seth had come over to welcome us back home, and what happened next completely knocked all our socks off. When Honiahaka laid eyes on Leah – Bam! He imprinted on her. Needless to say, even though she was ecstatic, Leah did a pretty good job of pretending that she wasn't, and made him work for it. She came round in the end though, and surprisingly it only ended up taking a week. Since Honiahaka had moved up as Alpha of 'Pack No.2' when it was clear I would be leaving the other world, it was pretty much a no-brainer that she would go with him when he returned. We were sad Leah would be leaving, but at the same time happy that she had found her soulmate. Although, truth be told, the way the imprint worked, if Leah hadn't wanted to go with him Honiahaka would have stayed here and joined my Pack.

So anyway, here we were sprawled on the couch watching the game, just like any other Sunday. Like I said before, it was like the adventure in that other world had just been some distant dream. If Honiahaka hadn't come back with us, I probably would have even wondered if it had all even really happened or was it just some mass hallucination. But the proof was in the pudding, so to speak. Or more accurately – in the imprinting. We'd crossed over to another world, lost our powers, got them back, fought a giant dragon, stopped the apocalypse and rebuilt a whole society. And through all the craziness, the one truth that had stayed certain and constant in that collision of worlds, was my love for Nessie.

I looked at her again, and felt the warmth and calmness she brought to my soul. My heart fired up with the fierce protectiveness I felt for her. Nessie was my whole world, the most precious thing I had in this life, and I would tear the world apart to protect her. As if she had a sixth sense, she looked back up at me and smiled. She snuggled closer up against me and started pulling the fabric of my t-shirt with her small fingers.

"Jaaake," she began, dragging out the sound of my name, "I was just thinking …."

"Mm-hmm?" I hummed. I loved listening to the musical tinkle of my Nessie's voice.

"This book that I'm reading at the moment, it talks about a map to a long lost treasure…" but Nessie didn't get a chance to finish her sentence before a chorus of voices rang out in unison –

"No!"

"Renesmee!"

"Absolutely not!"

"No way!"

"I don't think so, Nessie!"

"Not on my watch!"

"Over my dead body."

I thought for a moment that I must have spoken my thoughts out aloud, but judging by the looks on the faces of the vamps around us, I was pretty sure it must have been them. The last of the responses made me chuckle though, seeing as how the vamps were already dead. Well, undead, but who's counting.

"I wasn't talking to you guys," Nessie sniffed indignantly, "I was asking Jake." She looked up at me expectantly through those long dark eyelashes of hers. Oh, she was _good_. She knew I couldn't refuse her. I _wouldn't_ refuse her. I took a deep breath and steeled my resolve.

"Maybe later, Ness," I said gently, taking the book away from her. "In the meantime, let's just enjoy being back," I said, pulling her closer into my arms and nuzzling her cheek. With my other arm, I handed the book over to Edward while she wasn't looking. He nodded as I silently suggested to him that he get it as far away from Nessie as possible - Hell, burn it if necessary!

Nessie snuggled in closer into me, and as I sensed her breathing start to slow to a steady rhythm I realised that she was beginning to doze off. When she woke up and realised I'd gotten rid of her book, there would be an almighty tantrum to deal with, with the likely outcome being that I would soon be on a wild goose chase to hunt down some long lost treasure. But, I reasoned, I would deal with it then. For now, Nessie was in my arms where she belonged.

"I love you Ness," I murmured into her hair, "always and forever."

She sighed softly and snuggled further into my arms.

And the world was as it should be.

_The End_

**A/N** – _We made it!__ It's been an amazing ride, and I just wanted to say thank you to everyone for staying with the story through all 23 chapters! And an extra special thank you to dkgors and Deb, who reviewed almost every chapter along the way - you guys rock!_

_I've also started on a new body of work - it's a collab with Writer-in-the-making16 - a retelling of the Beauty And The Beast tale, with Jake and Nessie in the title roles! The Prologue was posted a few days ago, and the next chapter will be up in the coming week. Writer and I would love it if you stopped by and let us know what you think!_

_Until next time!_

_Cheers,  
><em>_BlackImprint_


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